Étienne, Count Davignon (born 4 October 1932) is a Belgian retired diplomat and civil servant who served as European Commissioner from 1977 to 1985.
In March 2026, a Belgian court ruled that Davignon can stand trial for his alleged role in events leading to the assassination of Congolese independence leader Patrice Lumumba in January 1961. He is accused of involvement in the unlawful detention and degrading treatment of Lumumba. Davignon was serving as a junior diplomatic intern in Kinshasa at the time. Davignon has consistently denied the allegations.[1][2]
Career
After receiving a Doctorate of Law from the Catholic University of Louvain, Davignon joined the Belgian Foreign Ministry, in 1959, and within two years had become an attaché under Paul-Henri Spaak, then Minister of Foreign Affairs.[3] He remained in Belgian government until 1965. In 1970, he chaired the committee of experts which produced the Davignon report on foreign policy for Europe.[4]