He discovered that ships carrying military equipment and firearms returned with vast amounts of rubber and ivory, but no commercial goods, suggesting forced labor was used to extract these resources. Morel launched a campaign to expose the atrocities, writing numerous articles and books, and founding the Congo Reform Association (CRA) in 1904. The CRA, supported by Sir Roger Casement and Mark Twain, formed the first humanitarian movement of the 20th century. The CRA's efforts led to international pressure on Belgium, forcing King Leopold II to relinquish his control over the Congo in 1908. The territory became the Belgian Congo, a colony of