The arms of the Democratic Republic of the Congo has changed several times since 1997. The current one was introduced in 2006 and depicts a leopard head, surrounded by an elephant tusk to the left and a spear to the right. Below are the three words which make up the national motto: Justice, Paix, Travail (Justice, Peace, Work in French). It was adopted on February 18, 2006 by President Joseph Kabila.
The arms are described in detail in Section 1, Article 1 of the 2005 constitution.
The old emblem, which was introduced in 2003, depicted three interlocked hands surrounded by a garland of corn. At the top is a lion head and at the bottom the motto Démocratie, Justice, Unité (Democracy, Justice, Unity in French).
The coat of arms of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1999 consists of a light blue shield. In the middle is a yellow star, above which there are six smaller stars. This coat of arms was introduced along with the flag.
An even older arms from 1971 to 1997, when the nation was known as Zaire, depicted a leopard head, below it a pair of crossed spears, around it a branch and an elephant tusk. The words Paix, Justice, Travail are written on a white band under the spears. This device was officially introduced on August 1, 1964.
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Coat of Arms of the Congo Free State and the Belgian Congo (1885 — 1960)
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Coat of arms of Congo-Léopoldville (1960-1963)
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Coat of arms of the Congo (1963-1971)
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Arms of Zaire (1971 - 1997)
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Coat of arms of Congo (1997-1999)
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Coat of Arms (1999-2003)
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National Emblem (2003-2006)
Famous quotes containing the words arms, democratic and/or republic:
“Happy for us, that when we find our constitutions defective and insufficient to secure the happiness of our people, we can assemble with all the coolness of philosophers and set it to rights, while every other nation on earth must have recourse to arms to amend or to restore their constitutions.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)
“There is a limit to the application of democratic methods. You can inquire of all the passengers as to what type of car they like to ride in, but it is impossible to question them as to whether to apply the brakes when the train is at full speed and accident threatens.”
—Leon Trotsky (1879–1940)
“Jean Jacques Rousseau ... is nothing but a fool in my eyes when he takes it upon himself to criticise society; he did not understand it, and approached it with the heart of an upstart flunkey.... For all his preaching a Republic and the overthrow of monarchical titles, the upstart is mad with joy if a Duke alters the course of his after-dinner stroll to accompany one of his friends.”
—Stendhal [Marie Henri Beyle] (1783–1842)