Belgian colonial museum re-opens amid protests and demands for return of artifacts

Belgium’s controversial Africa Museum re-opened on Saturday after a five-year renovation, but protests and a request from the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for the return of its stolen artefacts have overshadowed the site’s unveiling.

A 66 million euro ($75 million) upgrade was intended to help the Royal Museum for Central Africa, which houses items looted from what is now the DRC during Belgium’s brutal occupation of the country, shed its imperialist image.

But DRC President Joseph Kabila told Belgian newspaper Le Soir last week he would be making a formal request for the return of artifacts from his country in time for the opening of the country’s own museum next year.

And protests took place Saturday against the museum’s display of items plundered from the continent, with activists also demanding a memorial to seven Congolese people who died in 1897 after being brought to Belgium as living exhibits.

King Leopold II, who oversaw a colonial empire known as the Belgian Congo, put a total of 267 Congolese people on display in Tervuren, where today’s museum is located, as part of the World’s Fair.

A sculpture called the "Leopard Man," second left, is stored with others in a cavernous room at the Africa Museum.

“These victims deserve the same respect, if not more, than those of the dead colonialists,” protest group Intal Congo said.

Belgium had a colony in Africa from the 1880s to 1960, covering land in what is now the DRC, Rwanda and Burundi, which was exploited to harvest rubber and other resources.

Millions were put into forced labor and subjected to brutal punishments, with 10 million Congolese workers believed to have died in just 20 years.

“Before the renovation, the permanent exhibition was outdated and its presentation not very critical of the colonial image. A new scenography was urgently required,” the museum admits on its website.

A new exhibition, 53 Echoes of Zaire, depicts the history of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), formerly known as Zaire. A former Belgian colony, native people suffered greatly at the hands of their colonial masters.
Congo Belge II, Kalema. 52.5 x 69cm, Acrylic on canvas.

'Colonie Belge' is a sub-genre that developed within the Lumumbashi art movement of the 70s. Paintings typically show Congolese people suffering graphic violence at the hands of Congolese prison officers or police while the white Belgian officer casually looks on.Colonie Belge II, Culture Obligatoire. Tshibumba Kanda-Matulu. 40 x 68cm, Acrylic on canvas.

This painting narrates the arrival of European explorers, starting with the Portuguese in 1487. This period was marked by slavery and forced labor and the paintings keep the memories alive.
Untitled by Kalema. 47 x 65.5cm, Acrylic on canvas.

Independence was granted to Belgian Congo on 30 June 1960, and this painting shows the nation's first prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, delivering his famous speech in which he condemned the colonial period.
Le 30 juin 1960, Za?re indépendant, Tshibumba Kanda-Matulu. 46 x 63.5cm, Acrylic on canvas.

After Congo gained independence from Belgium, political strife began almost immediately with conflict between president Joseph Kasavubu (on the left) who favored decentralization and prime minister Lumumba who wanted a strong central government.Conflit Kasavubu -- Lumumba, Tshibumba Kanda-Matulu. 39.5 x 62.5cm, Acrylic on canvas.

The government of Patrice Lumumba lasted just 10 weeks, as first the province of Katanga declared its independence with Belgian support, and then an army coup led to Lumumba's arrest.
Calvaire d'Afrique,Tshibumba Kanda-Matulu. 40.5 x 74.5cm, Acrylic on canvas.

Joseph Mobutu assumed power in 1965 and changed the name of the country to Zaire in 1971. The painting depicts his speech to the United Nations in 1973 in which he severed historic ties with Israel.Discours le plus aplaudi de l'ONU, Tshibumba Kanda-Matulu. 42 x 75.5cm, Acrylic on canvas.

Painter Tshibumba Kanda Matulu posing in front of his home/studio.

Kanda-Matulu with his family. Here he's holding the unfinished painting of 'Declaration d'Indépendance'.

Collector Etienne Bol with artist Tshibumba Kanda Matulu.

Paintings show casual violence of colonial masters

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“The big challenge was to present a contemporary and decolonised vision of Africa in a building which had been designed as a colonial museum,” the statement adds.

To create a more “critical” tone, the museum will now feature videos examining African viewpoints of the period and a sculpture by Congolese artists Aimé Mpané.

But protesters against the site have demanded a new relationship to be established between Belgium and its former colonies, “based on solidarity and cooperation on an equal footing.”

The museum did not immediately respond to a request for comment.