Ambassador slams Congo over Mobutu money

Switzerland's ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) says the country "never supported" Bern in trying to repatriate the assets of its former dictator.

Linus von Castelmur told a press conference in the capital Kinshasha that DRC was blocking the return of funds of Mobutu Sese Seko, held in Swiss bank accounts.

“It is with great regret that Switzerland found that the Congolese government never provided support for a solution in this matter,” he said.

Swiss authorities last week released SFr7.7 million ($7.2 million) deposited by Mobutu and his family to the heirs of the dictator on order of the Federal Criminal Court. Bern had long blocked the return of the money, suspected of having been pilfered from public coffers.

“You cannot return money to someone who does not want to receive it,” von Castelmur said. Mobutu’s son Nzanga is the DRC’s deputy prime minister and agriculture minister.

Mobutu took power of the central African country in a 1965 coup, five years after it gained independence from Belgium. He ruled for 31 years before being overthrown by Laurent Kabila, the father of current president Joseph Kabila.
Mobutu died of cancer in Morocco in 1997.

swissinfo.ch and agencies