University begins work to return human remains to Africa

The University of Strasbourg in France has set up a scientific council whose task is to provide accurate information on the origins of the human remains in its collections, which date back to the colonisation of Africa under German and French rule, writes Zeenat Hansrod for RFI.

“We are living in a period where we are looking back at our colonial past and attempting to address it,” said Mathieu Schneider, vice-president of the university and chair of the scientific council, which had its first meeting on 23 June.

“Holding on to objects and human remains obtained during colonisation might be a problem if we want to have a peaceful dialogue between Europe and Africa,” he said.
Full report on the RFI site