Photo : AFP/BBC
NIAS Area Studies
AFRICA MONITOR
Photo : AFP/BBC
IN BRIEF
by Anu Maria Joseph
Nigeria: Germany returns looted artefacts
On 20 December, Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock handed 22 artefacts looted from Nigeria in the nineteenth century. The return of the Benin Bronzes is followed by a deal signed last year between the two countries agreeing to transfer more than 1,000 artefacts. Baerbock said that the return was part of efforts to deal with a “dark colonial history.” Nigeria’s Information Minister Lai Mohammed said: “Twenty years ago, even 10 years ago, nobody could have anticipated these bronzes returning to Nigeria,because the obstacles to achieving repatriation were seemingly insurmountable.” (“Benin Bronzes: Germany returns looted artefacts to Nigeria,” BBC, 20 December 2022)
Ethiopia: Commercial Bank of Ethiopia resumes all financial services in Tigray
On 20 December, the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia said that it has resumed all the financial services in previously war-torn regions in Tigray. The announcement came after a ceasefire agreement was signed between the federal government and the Tigray rebels in early November. The bank stated: “Following the peace agreement reached recently, the (CBE) branches we have in Shire, Alamata and Korem cities have started receiving money sent from abroad and locally as well as depositing money.” Since the war began in 2020, all banking, communication and transport facilities had been restricted to Tigray. (“Ethiopia’s biggest bank ‘resumes services’ in Tigray, Al Jazeera, 20 December 2022)
Deportation of migrants to Rwanda is lawful, says UK High Court
On 19 December, the UK High Court ruled that the government's proposal to deport migrants to Rwanda is lawful and that it did not violate the UN Refugee Convention or other human rights laws. The UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman said the government had always been confident about the policy and would now focus on implementing it at the earliest. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak termed the ruling a “common sense position” that “the vast majority of the British public" desired. However, the Labour Party said the policy was “unworkable” and “unethical.” (“Rwanda migrant plan is lawful, High Court rules,” BBC, 20 December 2022)