MAPUTO, May 26 (Xinhua) -- The Mozambican government is stepping up efforts to map cultural artifacts that were looted from the country during the colonial era and are now held in museums and institutions abroad, Minister of Education and Culture Samaria Tovela has said.
It is estimated that at least 800 items belonging to Mozambique's historical and cultural heritage were taken without proper consent, and the repatriation of these assets is seen as a crucial step toward historical justice and cultural reconciliation, the minister told Africa Day celebrations on Sunday in Maputo, the country's capital.
"Historical reparations can also be done in a symbolic and cultural way, and hence we are organizing ourselves to debate how we can appropriate what was stolen from our country, and from the African continent," Tovela was quoted as saying by AIM, the Mozambique state news agency.
"That's why the theme chosen for the celebrations of Africa Day is 'Justice for Africans and for persons of African descent through reparations,'" Tovela said.
For her part, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation Maria Manuela Lucas said the issue of historical reparations demands a sensitive multilateral dialogue, taking into account the human and environmental consequences of colonial-era practices such as deportations, arbitrary detentions, torture, and looting.
Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Mozambique Antoine Kola Masala Ne Beby noted that Africa is not only the cradle of humanity but also the heart of global hope, so he views reparations as a pillar of global justice and a tool for reconciliation with humanity. ■
