Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) political opposition leader Jean-Pierre Bemba was transferred July 3 to the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague, the Netherlands, where he is expected to face war crimes charges, Reuters reported. Bemba will see his career effectively end because of the development, while the governments of the DRC, Angola and Belgium will see their interests consolidated. Bemba, a protege of former DRC (then Zaire) President Mobutu Sese Seko, had been the leading opposition figure in the DRC after having narrowly lost the 2006 presidential vote to incumbent Joseph Kabila. Bemba was subsequently elected to the Senate, where he led his Union of the Nation coalition before going into exile in Belgium. His transfer to The Hague comes a few weeks after Belgian authorities detained him on an ICC arrest warrant for war crimes committed in 2002 and 2003. Though no date has yet been set for his trial, the move essentially brings Bemba’s political career to an end. The politician has been charged with committing war crimes in neighboring Central African Republic (CAR) when the DRC faced a civil war involving forces from most of its neighbors. Bemba is likely to challenge the charges, ensuring that the trial will not see a speedy conclusion. Bemba’s entanglement at the ICC essentially removes him as a leading rival to Kabila, the son of the man who dethroned Mobutu. Though Kabila has struggled to extend his government’s control over the eastern region of the country that faces civil war, the Congolese president no longer faces a rival of political prominence — at least not in the west around the capital region of Kinshasa. If Bemba is convicted, his business interests in Kinshasa — including the ownership of private media and telecommunications interests — will likely be sold or confiscated due to pressure by the DRC government. This would further strengthen Kabila’s hold over levers of power in the country. The Bemba trial at The Hague not only boosts the interests of the Kabila-led government, but it also provides gains to Belgium (the former colonial power in the DRC) and Angola. Belgian complicity in Bemba’s detainment and transfer will improve strained relations between Belgium and the DRC. The Belgian government has criticized the DRC for lack of transparency and unaccountable spending, while the DRC government has refuted the accusations and threatened to disrupt diplomatic relations over the Belgian claims. By detaining Bemba and ensuring that he faces trial, Belgium has removed a problem figure for the DRC government. The European country will likely be rewarded with a favorable review on a future investment deal (likely in the mining sector, though specific deals are still premature). Although relations will improve, it is unlikely that Belgium will see its influence in the DRC grow dramatically. The French, Americans, Chinese, Rwandans, and particularly the Angolans hold significant sway in Kinshasa. Bemba’s trial also removes a lingering threat to Angola, which has feared that the leader could revert to a Mobutu-era tactic of supporting the Angolan rebel group-turned-political party National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA). Angola is preparing for parliamentary elections in September, its first since 1992, and both the ruling Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA) and UNITA are in full campaign mode. The MPLA is expected to win a parliamentary majority, though it does not want to take chances. It is deploying security personnel throughout the country to carry out a small-arms confiscation exercise aimed at ridding the countryside and UNITA supporters of weapons left over from the country’s civil war. The MPLA wants to use the elections to establish legitimacy and lay the groundwork for presidential elections slated for 2009. Though the MPLA would not be expected to accept an elections defeat, it is working to prevent UNITA as a political party from reverting to a rebel threat. Ultimately, Bemba’s transfer to the ICC is not expected to trigger any significant backlash; his supporters and private militia have already been dispersed by DRC political and security forces. It will more likely trigger quiet celebrations in Kinshasa, Brussels and Luanda.