Congo burial for explorer Brazza

Mr de Brazza's remains, together with those of his wife and children, were placed in a marble mausoleum in the Congolese capital afer a ceremony.

The explorer founded the city in 1884 and ruled the colony which later became the Republic of Congo for 11 years.

His family had requested that he be commemorated in the city.

The presidents of Congo, Gabon and the Central African Republic as well as French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste Blazy, attended the reinterment.

The authorities said they wanted to honour Mr de Brazza for his anti-slavery work.

"What interests us here is the humanitarian dimension of De Brazza, his fight against slavery and the abuses and excesses of export companies during the colonial period," said Presidency Minister Charles Bowao.

But others felt the memorial was a poor use of resources.

"We cannot believe that a country which is saying that it is poor, has spent so much money to build a memorial, a costly memorial for a former colonialist," said opposition leader Eugene Sama of the Rally for Democracy and Development.

Brazza raced the Belgian King's envoy, Henry Morton Stanley, to capture the vast lands and mineral wealth of central Africa.

He was buried in Algeria, where he spent much of his later life, but his remains were exhumed last week.

The Republic of Congo gained independence from France in 1960.