Jacques Masangu

Jacques Masangu, originating from Katanga, was elected a Senator in the national Senate at the time of independence on 30 June 1960. He became the First Vice-President of the Congolese Senate in Léopoldville, the country's capital.

On 11 July 1960, Katangese provincial president Moïse Tshombe declared the mineral-rich province independent as the State of Katanga. On 15 July, Masangu became a member of CONAKAT, Tshombe's party[2] and was sent out Brussels, capital of the former colonising country Belgium, to represent the new state as the Resident Minister of the State of Katanga to the European Economic Community. The office in Brussels closed on 26 january 1962. In December 1962, he moved back to Léopoldville as a Senator for the central government.[3] Back at the service of the Léopoldville government, Masangu moved to Washington, D.C. as a Minister Counselor for Congo, where he only stayed for two months.[4]

In 1963, Masangu was appointed as a Deputy Prime Minister charged with social affairs in the government of Cyrille Adoula and, in that capacity, attended the State funeral of John F. Kennedy. From 1966 to 1977, he held several diplomatic positions, namely ambassador to the German Federal Republic, representative to the IAEA in Vienna, ambassador to Italy and representative to the FAO, and ambassador to Switzerland.[5] His final professional position was Congo's ambassador to the Netherlands, agent at the International Court of Justice, member of the Board of Directors of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague.[6] In Congo, he was president of the Board of Directors of the Socieété Financière de Développement (SOFIDE).[7]

• Jacques Masangu (2004). Le Katanga, que veut-il? Mémoires d'un Ambassadeur. Institut Congolais de Recherche en Développement et Etudes Stratégiques (ICREDES).