Former President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, has emphasized the need for a permanent global system to ensure the restitution of Africa's cultural heritage. Speaking at the Next Steps High-Level Side Event on Reparatory Justice on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, Mahama called on the UN and holding nations to establish clear, standardized legal and diplomatic mechanisms for the unconditional return of Africa's cultural heritage. He stressed that human remains are not collectibles and should be returned unconditionally.
The event, co-hosted by Ghana, Germany, and France, aimed to follow up on the historic adoption of a UN General Assembly Resolution and the High-Level Consultative Conference on Reparatory Justice held in Accra in June. Mahama highlighted that the debate on restitution is not about static objects in museum cases but about people, dignity, and an unfinished journey toward justice. He cited Ghana's experience, recalling the British destruction of Kumasi in 1874 and the looting of the palace of the Asantehene, and noted that a portion of that heritage was returned in 2024.
Mahama described the removal of physical remains of ancestors as the most heartbreaking form of dispossession. He mentioned the case of King Badu Bonsu II of Ahanta, who was executed by the Dutch authorities in 1838, and his head was sent to the Netherlands for phrenology studies. The head was preserved in a jar of formaldehyde for 170 years before being rediscovered by a Dutch journalist in 2002 and finally returned to Ghana in 2009. Mahama stressed that human remains are not collectibles but our ancestors, and restoring them is a fundamental test of our shared human dignity.
Mahama rejected the argument that restitution must wait until African nations build modern facilities. He stated that capacity constraints must never be used as a justification for continued possession and that capacity must serve as a bridge to return, not a barrier to justice. He noted that Africa is already building the infrastructure of the future through the African Union's Agenda 2063 flagship project, the Great African Museum, and the AU-EU Museum Partnership.
The former President emphasized that cultural heritage is not a luxury to be addressed after economic development but an engine of development. He called on multilateral development banks, international financial institutions, global foundations, and private sector partners to invest deliberately in Africa's cultural infrastructure. Mahama described the adoption of the UN Resolution as an indispensable moment of global truth and stressed that truth is not the destination but the starting line.
Mahama acknowledged progress made by some holding nations, including the Netherlands, Germany, and France, but emphasized that moral justice cannot rely on piecemeal generosity or isolated acts of goodwill. He stated that the work is ultimately about the children who will inherit the world and that they must inherit more than the story of what Africa lost. Mahama urged that the story of Africa's cultural heritage cannot end with its removal but must continue with its return.
Mahama concluded that Ghana does not come to the UN to assign guilt for the past but to forge a partnership with the present to repair the future. He urged that the UN General Assembly be remembered not as the place where they agreed on the past but as the place where they agreed to work together to repair the future.
Key points
- Mahama calls for a permanent global system for the restitution of Africa's cultural heritage.
- The former President emphasizes that human remains are not collectibles and should be returned unconditionally.
- Mahama urges the international community to invest in Africa's cultural infrastructure to preserve and showcase its heritage.
