There was that time when most of Africa was under the control of various European powers, divided up by those European nations into various colonial sections, thereby structured so that those European powers could profit from the abundant mineral wealth and other natural resources of those African countries, through the intense exploitation of those who were native to those countries. This meant that the people of Africa were subject to not only having their labor being fully exploited, but also being under the control of a European administration, of which failure to adhere to the conditions so set upon those Africans could easily lead to harsh punishment, death, or dismemberment.
Concerning what is now known as the Democratic Republic of Congo, this territory was, in the late 19th century, under the aegis of the Belgian nation, and specifically, this territory was subsequently under the administration of King Leopold II of Belgium. The purpose of the exploitation of the Congolese was for the abundant rubber resources that it was known for, so needed for automobile products such as tires, as well as being used in the production of latex. To extract these resources necessitated a lot of labor, and the native Congolese were ruthlessly exploited to produce the products so needed, and failure to adhere to the rules of the Belgians led them to suffer great punishment, even unto death.
As might be imagined, it is always easier to treat others harshly when they are viewed as something less than human, of which the Congolese were considered to be uneducated subhumans, not deserving of anything but contempt, who were thereby tortured and killed as the Belgians saw fit. The reading of history tells us that it is believed that 10 million people in the Congo suffered death during the peak period of this relentless exploitation, which represented the years 1891 through 1911, so perpetuated by the Belgians, all in the pursuit of rubber products and profit. The Congolese were continually at the mercy of the Belgians, of which, in the business to extract that rubber, they backed up this enterprise with ruthless violence against the native population, and in absence of the Congolese having modern weapons or even an armed force, the Congolese had little or nothing to fight back with, though they could resist through noncompliance and duly did so.
History is replete with many examples of humankind’s inhumanity to its own, often led by the dominant faction believing that it has the right to exploit the weaker, and done so typically in a way and manner, that cares not a whit about the other, because the exploiters do not equate the other as being on the same high level that they are. This is the reason why great crimes are committed by humanity and sanctioned by the nation-state, because it is believed that some are meant to be exploited, even unto death, and where there is profit to be made, so much the easier to justify, because for those fixated on profit, power, and exploitation of the other, there is work to be done, because their good life is dependent upon the other being fully exploited and then discarded, as if the other has no value, except what can be extracted by violence perpetrated or threatened upon them.