The President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has thrown his support behind the processes for the restitution and reparation of African cultural properties stolen by Europeans.
According to the President, it is long overdue for Africans to reclaim what was rightfully theirs, but “illegally and shamelessly” transported from the continent by the colonial masters.
“I support fully the initiative for the return and reparation of African cultural properties to the continent,” he said.
He was speaking on Tuesday, August 22, 2023 at the opening of a three-day summit for the restitution of African cultural heritage, being held at the W.E. Dubois Centre, Accra, under the auspices of Open Society Foundations.
He gave his support, not being oblivious to the tension and contestations associated with the restitution processes.
He, however, advocated working partnerships with international counterparts based on mutual respect and understanding involving dialogue, negotiation and consensus building at all levels.
President Akufo-Addo had on international platforms championed the need for Africa to be compensated for the atrocities of the slave trade.
“If reparations can rightfully be paid to victims of the Holocaust, it is so that reparations can be paid to victims of the slave trade,” he argued, while calling for a “formal apology” from Europe to Africa.
Addressing the gathering, which included Africans in the Diaspora, he remarked that the restitution, return, reparation and repatriation of stolen and looted African cultural properties under pre-colonial and colonial circumstances have to be issues of major concern to all Africans.
He observed, however, that these concerns have, in recent times dominated public discourse on the continent.
President Akufo-Addo cited the fact that governments, civil society groups, traditional authorities, scholars and researchers have called for the return of African cultural properties that were illegally and shamelessly transported from the continent.
RECONNECTION
President Akufo-Addo opined that reclaiming those cultural properties would help African descendants reconnect with their history. He explained that the reconnection of the past and present will also propel the building of new relations with the international community.
He singled out Europe, “which is principally responsible for the original thefts of the cultural properties. Most of these cultural properties, when returned, will also offer Africans the opportunity to develop local knowledge of the technological, cultural, social and effective value of the objects.”
FOCAL TEAM
He told the gathering that Ghana, through the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, and Culture, has set up a national focal team on restitution and repatriation.
The focal team is to conduct research and provide advice on international best practices and guidelines to support the country in the restitution process.
Ghana has set up the national focal team because it is mindful of the complexities of the repatriation and reparation processes and the sensitivities of the holders and recipients of the illegally acquired cultural properties.
RESTITUTED
He cited that countries like Nigeria, Senegal and Benin have managed to regain possession of some of the stolen cultural properties and relics.
He further mentioned that Ghana had restituted some, citing that in 2008, the government of Ghana collaborated with the elders of Ahanta to return the severed head of Nana Bedu II, who was executed in 1838.
He also mentioned the 1985 return of the collections of the Ashanti Royal Family and the Ashanti stool by the British government.
The three-day summit, which ends tomorrow, features plenary sessions, interactive thematic sessions, performances, and networking opportunities for key stakeholders.
Participants include representatives from the African Union, ECOWAS, NGOs, UN agencies, academia, creative communities, civil society and the African diaspora.
ORGANIZERS
The Open Society Foundations, founded by George Soros, are the world’s largest private funder of independent groups working for justice, democratic governance, and human rights. They approach this mission through the illuminating principles of justice, equity, and expression—defining characteristics of any truly open society.
The Open Society Foundations champion the search for bold, democratic solutions to urgent, common challenges that advance justice, equity, and human dignity.
They do this by supporting a wide array of independent voices and organizations around the world that provide a creative and dynamic link between the governing and the governed.
Their approach seeks to counter the narrow pursuit of political self-interest and short-term opportunism in pursuit of a sustainable future for people and the planet that leaves no one behind.
