Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The national **flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo** is a sky blue flag, adorned with a yellow star in the upper left canton and cut diagonally by a red stripe with a yellow fimbriation. It was adopted on 20 February 2006.[*Citation needed*] A new constitution, ratified in December 2005 and which came into effect in February 2006, promoted a return to a flag similar to that flown between 1963 and 1971, with a change from a royal blue to sky blue background. Blue represents peace. Red stands for "the blood of the country's martyrs", yellow the country's wealth; and the star a radiant future for the country. (subscription required)

## Previous flags

The previous flag was adopted in 2003. It is similar to the flag used between 1960 and 1963. The flag is based on the flag which was originally used by King Leopold's Association Internationale Africaine and was first used in 1877. The design was then implemented as the flag of the Congo Free State after the territory was recognized as an official possession of Leopold II at the Berlin Conference. After gaining independence from Belgium on 30 June 1960, the same basic design was maintained. However, six stars were incorporated to symbolise the six provinces of the country at the time. This design was used only from 1960 to 1963. This flag was reimplemented in 1997, when the Mobutu government was overthrown and the country assumed its current designation of Democratic Republic of the Congo, with the 2003 flag only being different by using a lighter shade of blue.

The flag of the first Republic of Mobutu Sese Seko became the official banner after Mobutu established his dictatorship. This flag was used from 1966–1971 and consisted of the same yellow star, now made smaller, situated in the top corner of the hoist side, with a red, yellow-lined band running diagonally across the center. The red symbolized the people's blood; the yellow symbolized prosperity; the blue symbolized hope; and the star represented unity. This flag was changed when the country was renamed Zaire in 1971. The Zaire flag was created as part of Mobutu's attempted re-Africanization of the nation and was used officially until Mobutu's overthrow in the First Congo War.

Flag of Congo Free State.svgFlag of Association Internationale Africaine, the Congo Free State (1877–1908), and the Belgian Congo (1908–1960)Flag of Congo-Léopoldville (1960-1963).svgFlag of Congo-Léopoldville from independence June 30, 1960 until 1963Flag of Congo-Léopoldville (1963-1966).svgFlag from 1963 until 1966Flag of Congo-Kinshasa (1966-1971).svgFlag from 1966 until 1971Flag of Zaire.svgFlag of Zaire 1971–1997Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (1997-2003).svgFlag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (1997-2003)Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2003-2006).svgFlag from 2003 until 2006Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svgFlag since February 20, 2006
## See also

* Emblem of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

## References

1. ↑ Construction sheet (registration required)
2. ↑ News story about the change (subscription required)
3. ↑ Democratic Republic of the Congo(DRC) at Flags of the World