Was Belgian King Baudouin a Saint? An African Cardinal Has Doubts
He cited a "black mark" linked to Baudouin's alleged role in the assassination of Patrice Lumumba (1925-1961), the first prime minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
After a military coup, Lumumba was captured and, with the help of Belgians, tortured and executed.
The final stage of the execution was carried out by the Belgian contractors, led by police chief Frans Verscheure. Lumumba was put in front of a tree and shot. Four Belgian officers, under the command of the Belgian authorities, were present.
The next morning, Belgian gendarmerie officer Gerard Soete and his team dug up the bodies, dismembered them and dissolved them in sulphuric acid, while the bones were ground up and scattered.
Lumumba's murder allowed the regimes of Belgium, the US and reportedly the UK to abandon their own assassination plots. In 2002, Belgium formally apologised for its role in the execution.
Addressing the Congregation for the Causes of Saints at the Vatican, the Congolese prelate called for an investigation to shed light on this historic episode.
Cardinal Ambongo acknowledged that Baudouin's life could contain virtuous elements, but insisted that this dossier had to be examined in depth before any progress could be made towards beatification.
This comes after Francis, during his visit to Belgium last September, announced the opening of the process for Baudouin's beatification, highlighting his deep faith and his [cosmetic] refusal to ratify a law on abortion in 1992.
Picture: Baudouin I (1930-1993) © wiki, CC BY-SA, #newsFmfcagumep