The Zimbabwean government has renewed its call on the United Kingdom to repatriate the remains of its 19th century warriors who were taken away by the British colonial masters after they rose up against colonial rule.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa who made the call during a speech at the burial of independence hero, Jaison Chirinda, who died on October 27 aged 82, said the move to repatriate the remains of the warriors was part of mounting pressure on Western countries and museums to return African artefacts and historical pieces plundered during the colonial era by powers such as Belgium, Britain, France and Germany.
“We remind the British government and people that the spirits of our heroes will not rest until their remains are repatriated and interred in a dignified way,” Mnangagwa.
He specifically mentioned anti-colonial hero King Lobengula, who was forced into exile, as well as Mbuya Nehanda and Sekuru Kaguvi, who were executed by hanging for resisting colonial rule.
“Equally, the remains of our brave warriors such as Chief Chiwashira, Chief Chingaira, Chief Mapondera and Chief Mashayamombe are still held in British museums as trophies, after they were captured and killed in horrific circumstances,” Mnangagwa added.
Mnangagwa also demanded an apology from the British government for colonial atrocities they committed.
“We demand an apology and reparations from the British government,” he insisted.
He also noted that Zimbabwe believes the remains were taken to the United Kingdom as war trophies and are being used for research at Cambridge University and London’s Natural History Museum.
Investigations over the years have revealed that the Natural History Museum in the UK holds over 25,000 human remains, with a number of pieces originating from Zimbabwe.
Two years ago, the British institutions announced that they were ready to cooperate, after a Zimbabwean delegation visited the country for talks but the issue has been topical for over a decade with the British revealing that discussions on the subject began in 2014.
The British control ended in 1965, but the local white minority ruled Zimbabwe, then known as Rhodesia, until 1980, when it was renamed Zimbabwe following a guerilla warfare often referred to as the “Rhodesian Bush War.”