| | Laurent Désiré Kabila was born in Jadotville (Likasi) on 27 November 1939 of a mulubakat father and a lunda mother. His father, 'Taratibu' Désiré Kabila was a post office clerk from Ankoro (Kabula). By the time 'Taratibu' retired in 1952, he was assimilated with the évolués because of his close relationship with the colonial administration. He had not, however, obtained the formal évolué status. He then settled down in the surroundings of Ankoro where he was appointed 'head of sector' (chef de secteur) of Kamalondo by the colonial authorities in 1958. Laurent Désiré Kabila had mostly remained with his mother in Lubumbashi to study. He very probably went to Kinshasa for his secondary school but never went beyond a first or possibly second year. He returned to Elisabethville to work in various places. To compensate for his lack of formal education, Kabila was an obstinate reader. In 1960, he went to work for his father as a secretary. It was in this context that he learned about territorial administration and the problems of the rural populations. His own political opinions, however, were radically opposed to his father's. Laurent's sympathy for the Mouvement National Congolais/Lumumba (MNC/L) and Balubakat was irreconcilable with his father's Conakat membership. |
