Parallel to this, Belgian authorities recently released a restitution policy document, which is the first attempt at a series of guidelines for dealing with colonial collections and restitution, adapted to the Belgian context.
In line with this policy, on 3 July 2022 the Belgian Parliament enacted a restitution law to create a systematic legal framework for the restitution and return of property linked to the colonial past of the Belgian state.
In the article Lucie Lambrecht and Lucy Ryan emphasise that the law permits the Belgian state to restitute objects it unlawfully acquired, in implementation of a treaty concluded by Belgium and the state of origin and on the basis of a scientific study, notwithstanding contrary agreements or current or earlier prescription laws under the Civil Code.
While it is clear from policy statements that the new restitution law will be utilised for the first time in the return of objects to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, it is less clear how eagerly it will be relied upon by, or in relation to, other states of origin belonging to Belgium’s colonial past, which are few.
