Overview
- Brussels’ judicial chamber ruled on March 17 that the 93-year-old must appear before a criminal court over his alleged role surrounding Lumumba’s 1961 transfer to Katanga.
- Prosecutors argue Davignon, then a young diplomat in Léopoldville, had knowledge of the plan that led to Lumumba’s arrest and subsequent killing.
- The case advances on counts including illegal detention, unlawful transfer, denial of a fair trial, and inhumane treatment, after a separate allegation of intent to murder was dropped.
- Davignon is the last surviving Belgian among those named by Lumumba’s relatives in a 2011 complaint, and he has not attended recent hearings.
- A full trial is not expected before 2027 due to scheduling and practical constraints tied to the decades-old case and the defendant’s age.