Mario-Philippe Losembe

Mario-Philippe Losembe Batwanyele (born 29 September 1933) is a Congolese politician and diplomat. He is currently serving as the second vice president of the Senate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Mario-Philippe Losembe Batwanyele
Losembe in 1960
Democratic Republic of the Congo Senator
Assumed office
2007
PresidentJoseph Kabila
Executive and diplomatic offices
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
In office
1970 – February 1972
PresidentJoseph-Désiré Mobutu
Preceded byCyrille Adoula
Minister of Education of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
In office
1969–1970
PresidentJoseph-Désiré Mobutu
Republic of the Congo Chargé d'Affaires to the United States
In office
1962–1965
PresidentJoseph Kasa-Vubu
Commissioner-General for Education and Worship of the Republic of the Congo
In office
14 September 1960 – February 1961
PresidentJoseph Kasa-Vubu
Preceded by
Personal details
Born
Mario Cardoso

(1933-09-29) September 29, 1933
Stanleyville, Belgian Congo
(Now Kisangani, Congo-Kinshasa)
Political partyMouvement National Congolais (?–1960)
Forces du Renouveau (2007–)
Alma materUniversité catholique de Louvain

Biography

Mario-Philippe Losembe Batwanyele was born as Mario-Philippe Cardoso on 29 September 1933 in Stanleyville, Belgian Congo to a Portuguese father and Lokele mother who originated from the Yaokandja sector of the Isangi Territory. He earned his secondary education at St. Joseph's Institute in Léopoldville, graduating in late 1953. The following September he enrolled in the Université catholique de Louvain's Institute of Applied Psychology and Pedagogy.[1] In 1958 he earned a degree in psychology and pedagogy. Losembe subsequently became a research assistant at Lovanium University.[2] He was selected by Patrice Lumumba to lead the Mouvement National Congolais delegation to the economic portion of the Belgo-Congolese Round Table Conference in Brussels from 26 April to 16 May 1960.[3] On his initiative the delegations formed a "Front National" to develop a unified negotiating position.[4] Following the independence of the Congo, Losembe served as secretary-general of the Ministry of Education,[5] though he resigned after only a few weeks in office.[6]

Losembe (far right) sitting in the Senate, 2009

Losembe led the Congolese delegation to the United Nations from 1960 to 1961. He served as chargé d'affaires to the United States from 1962 until 1965.[7] He served as President Joseph-Désiré Mobutu's education minister from 1969 until 1970.[8] He subsequently held the office of foreign minister from 1970 to 1972.[7] That year, Mobutu accused Losembe of embezzling government funds appropriated for the Revolutionary Government of Angola in Exile, causing the latter to shortly thereafter flee to Europe.[9] Losembe returned to the country after a general amnesty was declared in November 1974.[10]

In 2007 he was elected to the Congolese Senate as a member of the Forces du Renouveau party to represent Orientale Province.[7] He was shortly thereafter elected Second Vice President of the Senate by members of the body, 57 to 49.[11]

Losembe is the father of Congolese businessman Michel Losembe.[12]

Citations
  1. Tshonda Omasombo & Kennes 2006, p. 121.
  2. Makombo 2015, p. 21.
  3. Hoskyns 1965, p. 50.
  4. CRISP 1960, Note sur les rapports de groupes.
  5. Hoskyns 1965, p. 237.
  6. Devlin 2008, p. 99.
  7. DOS 2007.
  8. MacGaffey 2014, p. 61.
  9. Angola Comité 1972, p. 69.
  10. Amnesty International 1980, p. 13.
  11. VirungaNews 2007.
  12. Finpress Group Afrimages 2016.

References
  • "Aux origines des misères de la BIAC". Le Soft International (in French). Finpress Group Afrimages. 4 April 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  • Devlin, Lawrence (2008). Chief of Station, Congo: Fighting the Cold War in a Hot Zone. PublicAffairs. ISBN 9780786732180.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Facts and Reports. 2. Angola Comité. 1972.
  • MacGaffey, Janet (2014). Entrepreneurs and Parasites (illustrated, reprint ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781107634909.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Hoskyns, Catherine (1965). The Congo Since Independence: January 1960 – December 1961. London: Oxford University Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Human Rights Violations in Zaire: An Amnesty International Report (2 ed.). Amnesty International. 1980. ISBN 9780862100094.
  • "Léon KENGO WA DONDO à la présidence du Sénat". VirungaNews.com (in French). Kinshasa. 12 May 2007. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
  • Makombo, Jean-Marie Mutamba (2015). Autopsie du gouvernement au Congo-Kinshasa: Le Collège des Commissaires généraux (1960-1961) contre Patrice Lumumba (in French). Editions L'Harmattan. ISBN 9782336392158.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • "La table ronde économique belgo-congolaise". Courrier hebdomadaire du CRISP (in French). Brussels: Centre de recherche et d'information socio-politiques (66). 1960. doi:10.3917/cris.066.0001.
  • Tshonda Omasombo, Jean; Kennes, Erik (2006). Reṕublique démocratique du Congo: biographies des acteurs de la transition : juin 2003-juin 2006 (in French). University of Kinshasa Centre for Political Studies. ISBN 9789075894844.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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