Belgium has handed over to the Democratic Republic of Congo a list of more than 80,000 cultural objects taken from the current territory of Congo in previous centuries. This was announced by the director of the Royal Museum of Central Africa, known as the Museum of Africa, Bart Ovry in an interview with AFP, UNN reports.
Details
Belgium is actively implementing the process of restitution of objects taken from its former colony of Congo. A research project on the origin of objects from museum collections, many of which were acquired during the colonization period, is underway.
We want to know much more about the origin of the items and whether we can establish that they were obtained through theft, violence or manipulation
In February 2022, an inventory of more than 80,000 cultural objects (sculptures, masks, dishes, musical instruments, etc.), mostly from the territory of the current Democratic Republic of Congo, was handed over to the Congolese authorities. Four months later, Belgium passed a law regulating the restitution of property looted between 1885 and 1960, when the Congo was the personal property of Belgian King Leopold II and then became a Belgian colony until independence.
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According to Secretary of State Thomas Dermin, at this stage, the Democratic Republic of Congo is expected to request restitution. After that, a joint commission of Belgian and Congolese experts will be set up to decide whether the acquisition of the properties is legitimate.
Context
The restitution of cultural heritage objects in Congo has been discussed since the 1960s. Back then, dictator Mobutu Sese Seko made this demand after an exhibition in the United States of Congolese objects from Brussels collections. In the late 1970s, the museum returned 114 items to the country, which was then called Zaire. But those were objects of secondary importance.
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