German project reinvents 1884 Berlin Conference to mull legacy of colonialism

By Catarina Demony

Activists, artists and academics brought together by German cultural project Dekoloniale gathered in Berlin on Friday, 140 years after European leaders divided up the African continent between them, to discuss the legacy of colonialism and reflect on the Berlin Conference of 1884.

This week's event gathered experts representing the African continent and its global diaspora to discuss the effects of the original Berlin Conference which began on Nov. 15, 1884, and led to an act regulating European colonization and trade in Africa.

Dekoloniale participants met at the head office of the representation of the European Commission in Germany, near the former official residence of the country's "Iron Chancellor" Otto von Bismarck, where the 1884 meeting took place.

At the Berlin Conference, which lasted more than 100 days, leaders of several European powers, from Portugal to Britain, negotiated their claims to African territory. By 1900, Europeans ruled more than 90% of the continent.

Driven by economic motives and ignoring cultural and linguistic boundaries established by diverse African tribes and kingdoms, the conference carved up the continent into the borders that exist today.

"What happened here in Berlin was not just an act of territorial rearrangement, it was an act of violence, one that echoes throughout generations," said Bell Ribeiro-Addy, a British Labour lawmaker of Ghanaian descent.

"It wasn't just about drawing borders," she added. "It was about power control, exploitation, claiming resources, land, minerals, labour."

Seated at a round table, one of the delegates, Finnish-Nigerian author Minna Salami, said the Berlin Conference led to impoverishment, conflicts, corruption and trauma across Africa.

Michaela Moua, the European Commission's first-ever coordinator on anti-racism, also spoke at Friday's event, and told Reuters that reckoning with the past was key to understanding racism.

"These are painful truths," she said.

Some at event called for reparations for colonialism and slavery. One of the delegates' final demands urged European nations to "give back what you stole from us."

Moua said reparations were not the responsibility of the European Commission - the executive arm of the EU - and that it was up to member states to decide how to approach the issue, which is gaining momentum worldwide but remains highly divisive.

Proponents of reparations say slavery and colonialism have caused persistent racial inequalities while opponents say countries should not be held responsible for historical wrongs. Most former colonial powers have rejected calls for reparations.