Paper short abstract:

History recounts Katangan citizenship claims as an elitist and colonial view. New research examines that the religious sphere and print material were locations for the development of a belief in a Katangan citizenship between future leaders and local citizens 20 years before Congolese independence.

Paper long abstract:

The cry for citizenship in Katanga (southern DRC) is a historically under-researched concept. Much of the history recounts Katangan citizenship claims and the nationalist movement as unpopular and an elitist and colonial view. However, new research examines the idea that the religious sphere and the spread of local printed material were prominent locations for the discussion and formation of an idea in a separate Katangan citizenship, years before Congolese independence was discussed at provincial levels.

This paper examines how the population of colonial Katanga found spaces and outlets for discussions of citizenship in the early 1930s and 1940s. Based on fieldwork conducted between October 2011 and May 2013, this paper highlights the use of religious spaces and locally printed materials as an area for the creation of a Katangan citizenship and support for the local regional authority. It examines personal dialogue between local citizens, religious leaders, and the local Katangan authority in the formation and development of these conversations. It further examines private letters, diaries, and newspaper editorials in the debate to maintain this identity and finally how these ideas became discursive elements in the creation of a local identity and legitimate provincial authority and a separate citizenship for the province. Finally, the paper analyzes the dynamics of pre-constructed and locally reconstructed identity and how various spaces in Katanga helped to produce these ideas.