Belgian King reiterates regrets for colonial past in Congo but no apology
Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of CongoReuters Belgium’s King Philippe reaffirmed his deepest regrets on Wednesday for the exploitation, racism and acts of violence during his country’s colonisation of the Democratic Republic of Congo, but again stopped short of formally apologising. Philippe became the first Belgian official two years ago to express regret for colonisation, and some […]
Australia strips Belgium’s ‘evil tyrant’ Leopold from name of mountains
Melbourne, AustraliaReuters Australia has renamed its King Leopold mountain ranges Wunaamin Miliwundi, replacing the name of a Belgian ruler known for his brutal colonisation of Africa with traditional names used by Indigenous people. The state of Western Australia has debated changing the name of the mountains for nearly a decade, and finally made the decision […]
“Excuses are not enough”: Women taken from African mothers by Belgium now want redress
Associated Press’ SAMUEL PETREQUIN reports on the fight of women to seek compensation after being removed from their families as children in the Belgian Congo…
Find better ways to depict history, says South African #RhodesMustFall activist
Nairobi, KenyaThomson Reuters Foundation Countries must find more creative ways to depict their history than statues that glorify racists and colonialists, a founder of South Africa’s successful Rhodes Must Fall movement said on Thursday. A wave of anti-racism protests sweeping across the United States and Europe has reignited debate about monuments that glorify countries’ imperialist […]
Toppling of UK statue fuels debate on monuments to slave traders
London, UKThomson Reuters Foundation Anti-racism protesters who tore down a statue honouring a slave trader in a British port city have fuelled a hot global debate over how to deal with monuments to historic figures who profited from enslaving African people. The toppling of the statue of Edward Colston, who made a fortune in the […]