Columnist: KWAME OPOKU, DR.

Gold mask, 20 cm in height, weighing 1.36 kg. of pure gold, seized by the British from Kumase, Ghana, in 1874 and now in the Wallace Collection, London, United Kingdom.

Reclaiming Looted Asante Gold (Ghana): Triumph Of Morality Over Brutality?

Jan 19, 2023 | Feature Article

ldquo;The town burnt furiously, all these three days of rain failing in any way to impede the progress of the devour ...

Pair of leopard figures, now in Her Majesty Collection, the Queen of the United Kingdom, Admiral Rawson Collection., London, UK. The commanders of the British Punitive Expedition force to Benin in 1897 sent the pair of leopards to the British Queen soon after the looting and burning of Benin City.

Even The Big Elephant In Bloomsbury Must Defend Itself: British Museum Reacts To...

Dec 7, 2022 | Feature Article

39;The looting of Benin City and Maqdala were British war crimes then and now: it should be a matter of national sh ...

Anthropomorphic statue, King Ghzo, Dahomey, Republic of Benin

Restitution Day: Remembrance And Reckoning

Nov 7, 2022 | Feature Article

lsquo;The return of a work of art or record to the country which created it enables a people to recover part of ...

Mandu yenu , throne of King Njoya, Bamoun, Cameroon Pwo Mask, Chokwe, Angola Female founding dynastic ancestor Ngonso, Ngonso kingdom, Cameroon - all now in Humboldt Forum, Berlin, Germany.

Germany Must Surrender All Ownership Rights To Colonial Artefacts

Sep 17, 2022 | Feature Article

We publish below a press release from Postkolonial Berlin urging Germany to surrender all ownership rights to coloni ...

Gold mask, 20 cm in height, weighing 1.36 kg. of pure gold, seized by the British from Kumasi, Ghana, in 1874 and now in the Wallace Collection, London, United Kingdom.

Will The New Guidelines Of The Arts Council England Help Restitution Of Looted A...

Sep 15, 2022 | Feature Article

It does not matter (although many museums pretend it does) that the first of several Hague conventions was not pr ...

How Far Have We Gone In The Struggle For The Restitution Of African Artefacts?

Aug 24, 2022 | Feature Article

ldquo;The exhibition is showcasing some of the works that made Benin (Nigeria) famous. It once again, reminds th ...

Benin Bronze artworks at the MKG museum in Hamburg

Germany Transfers Legal Rights in Benin Artefacts to Nigeria

Jul 1, 2022 | Feature Article

We reproduce below a press release issued by Berlin Post-kolonial on the occasion of the signing of a Joint Politica ...

Kwame Opoku, Dr., Dr., former Legal Adviser, United Nations Office, Vienna.

Have Ethical Considerations Returned To Restitution For Good? Smithsonian Adopts...

Jun 6, 2022 | Feature Article

lsquo; hellip; our research methods resemble the interrogations of an investigating magistrate much more ...

Oba of Benin, Ewuare II, receives two Benin artefacts, Okwukor and a commemorative head of an Oba, returned by Jesus College, Cambridge, United Kingdom, and University of Aberdeen, United Kingdom.

Nigerian President Clarifies Principles On Restitution Of Looted Artefacts

Feb 28, 2022 | Feature Article

Below is a press release on a significant statement by President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria on the restitution of l ...

How Long Will The British Government And The British Museum Resist Calls For Cha...

Jan 31, 2022 | Feature Article

You must understand what the Parthenon Marbles mean to us. They are our pride. They are our sacrifices. They are our ...

Commemorative head of an Oba, Benin, Nigeria, now in Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, USA.

Is The Museum Of Fine Arts Boston Serious About The Restitution Of Looted Africa...

Dec 24, 2021 | Feature Article

Truth must be repeated constantly because error is being repeatedly preached round about all the time, and not ju ...

Royal statues, Dahomey, Republic of Benin, previously in Muse du Quai Branly, Paris, that France returned to the Republic of Benin. Left, King Gll, half-lion, half-man. Centre, King Ghzo, half-bird, half-man. Right, King Bhanzin, half-shark, half-man.

Are We Receiving The Restitution We Seek?

Dec 7, 2021 | Feature Article

lsquo;One of the most noble incarnations of a people rsquo;s genius is its cultural heritage, built up over the ...

Ngonso Stool, Nso, Cameroon, now in Humboldt Forum, Berlin, Germany.

Humboldt Forum Opened Again Amidst Protest

Sep 27, 2021 | Feature Article

We reproduce here below a press release from Postkolonial Berlin protesting against the opening of the Humboldt Foru ...

Metal vessel, Benin, Nigeria, now in Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, Berlin, Germany.

Benin Bronzes Belong To Oba Of Benin

Sep 20, 2021 | Feature Article

As for the ownership status of the works, who does not know that Benin is the true owner despite the semantics an ...

Commemorative head, Benin, Nigeria to be restituted by Aberdeen University, United Kingdom

National Museums Scotland Not In A Hurry To Restitute Looted African Artefacts

Jul 8, 2021 | Feature Article

lsquo; lsquo;It would not have been right to have retained an item of such great cultural importance that was ac ...

Mask, Luba, Democratic Republic of Congo, now in Africa Museum, Tervuren, Belgium.

Proposed Belgian Guidelines Re-Introduce Ethics Into Restitution Debate

Jun 11, 2021 | Feature Article

lsquo;Although the existing legal framework is not favourable to the original owners of the objects in colonial ...

About Author
Dr. Kwame Opoku writes about looted cultural objects