Belgian paternalism in the Congo, reduced to…

Belgian paternalism in the Congo, reduced to its essentials, means that basic political rights can be withheld indefinitely from Africans as long as their material and spiritual needs are properly met.

Paternalism draws its rationale from a vision of Africans as essentially "big children," whose moral upbringing requires a proper mixture of authority and dedication.

Its essence is perhaps best captured in the opening sentence of a celebrated work by a former colonial governor general, Pierre Ryckmans: "Dominer pour servir (Dominate in order to serve. ... This is the only excuse for colonial conquest; it is also its complete justification.)."