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Berlin Museum to return hundreds of skulls of prominent East Africans to ex-colony

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The Berlin Museum authority has concluded plans to return hundreds of human skulls of prominent citizens from former German colony of East Africa after having researched their origin for several years, the museum management said on Wednesday.

Hermann Parzinger, the president of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, an authority that oversees many of Berlin’s museums, including the Museum of Prehistory and Early History, said in a statement that during extensive research at the city’s Museum of Prehistory and Early History, scientists examined 1,135 skulls.

Out of the figure, 904 skulls could be assigned to areas in present-day Rwanda, 202 to Tanzania and 22 to Kenya while the origin of seven of the skulls could not be assigned.

“The clear objective of provenance research on human remains is to restitute them to the countries concerned,” said Parzinger.

“We are ready for immediate restitution and are now waiting for signals from the countries of origin,” he added.

According to Parzinger, a vast majority of the skulls originate from burial sites, especially cemeteries or burial caves, but partly also from local execution sites and in some cases also from executions by Germans.

“The human remains examined belong to the anthropological collection of about 7,700 skulls that the museum authority had taken over from Berlin’s Charité hospital in 2011.

“Due to the size of the collection and the diversity of its geographic origin, it has not been possible to examine all skulls yet,” he added.

In the days of colonial rule, most of East Africa was a German colony which included present-day Burundi, Rwanda, parts of Tanzania, and a small region of Mozambique.

In recent years, the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation has made efforts to return several human remains and artifacts that were stolen by Germans and other European colonialists in the past and ended up in Berlin collections.

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DRC authorities arrest six over break-in at Lumumba’s Mausoleum

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Police in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) say six people have been arrested over a break-in and vandalism at the mausoleum of the country’s assassinated independence leader, Patrice Lumumba, in Kinshasa, the country’s capital.

The police had announced the six arrests late Wednesday and said they were still looking for two more suspects.

Interior Minister, Jacquemin Shabani, said in a statement that during the break-in which occurred on Monday, a case containing a single gold-capped tooth, the only part of the former leader that remained after his assassination, was broken by the vandals.

“We assure that the relic is secure and it is protected,” the minister said, without offering more information.

The return of Lumumba’s tooth from former colonizer Belgium in 2022 had been celebrated around Congo, with the tooth taken around the vast country so people could pay their respects.

Lumumba is widely hailed as the nationalist activist who helped end colonial rule in the DRC and went on to become the country’s first prime minister and was seen as one of Africa’s most promising new leaders, but he was assassinated within a year in 1961.

His body was dismembered and dissolved with acid in an apparent effort to keep any grave from becoming a pilgrimage site.

For many in Congo, Lumumba is a symbol of the positive developments the country could have achieved after its independence but instead, it became mired in decades of dictatorship that drained its vast mineral riches.

A military coup toppled Lumumba, who was arrested, jailed and later killed. His assassination, blamed on separatists, cleared the way for the rise of Mobutu Sese Seko, who ruled the country he later renamed Zaire for decades with support from Western powers until his death in 1997.

His one remaining tooth was kept by the Belgian police commissioner who oversaw the destruction of his body.

The tooth was returned to Congo after the visit of Belgium’s King Philippe, who expressed regrets for his nation’s abuses in Congo when it was a Belgian colony.

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Miss SA opens up on why she withdrew from Miss Universe pageant

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Reigning Miss South Africa 2024, Mia le Roux, has opened up on the reasons behind her withdrawal from the Miss Universe pageant which was held in Mexico, where Nigeria’s Chidinma Adetshina was the first runner-up.

While narrating her experience in a video she shared on social media on Wednesday, le Roux said her body was taking so much physical strain.

“Hello everyone, I’m back in South Africa and wanted to reach out to you all. Thank you so much for all of your kind wishes, your support and prayers,” she said in the video.

“I wanted to be transparent with you and share my story. A lot of you would’ve seen the video that I made about vertigo, while I was in Mexico at Miss Universe.

“Vertigo is a condition where it feels like you are dizzy and there’s a sense of the world spinning around you. It’s very intense and can cause major issues with your imbalance.

“Mentally I was very strong, I was ready, but physically, my body was taking strain. I had to even seek medical help in Mexico City. And even after the medical help, my condition still wasn’t improving.”

She added that during the preliminary rounds of Miss Universe, she had continued to push herself but her vertigo intensified and it became unmanageable.

She stated that while she was waiting backstage, she fell repeatedly and couldn’t stand up without support and was not in a position to safely walk on stage.

“It was not easy. As I was not doing it just for myself but for all of you in South Africa,” she said.

“I will continue to serve as your Miss South Africa, to support and uplift those who come after me. With my unbreakable spirit and an exciting year ahead, I will keep fighting for myself and for everyone with dreams and passions. I am so proud to still be your Miss South Africa,” she added.

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