Official literature depicts the colony as a 'oasis of tranquility' between the turbulent Leopoldian years and the chaos preceding and following independence. But in truth, the population was not simply and passively colonised. Protests took the form of popular devotions, rebellions and strikes. Insurrections were always crushed in a bloody fashion. In some cases, the strikers were backed up by people from abroad. In the opinion of the Compagnie Maritime Belge (CMB), there was no problem with its workers in 1941. Supposedly, the labour union and agitators who made feelings run high aboard were responsible for the problem. Letter of the Agence Maritime Internationale S.A. to the Minister for Economic Affairs in London, 1941.
NAB, Archives of the Maritime Administration, no. 9169.
NAB, Archives of the Maritime Administration, no. 9169.
