Objectives:
The Working Group on Human Remains in Belgian Collections emerged from the HOME research project launched by the Royal Museum for Central Africa (AfricaMuseum).
Restitution Measures:
In 2018, the Minister of Federal Science Policy proposed the creation of a working group to study the legal framework for the restitution of human remains. However, this working group was proposed separately and efforts came to nothing because the government collapsed.The RMCA launched the HOME project to thoroughly evaluate the historical, scientific, and ethical background of human remains in Belgian collections . A concrete measure included addressing requests such as an initial request for the restitution of Lusinga’s skull was subsequently made in writing in 2019 , though the collection of human skeletal material was transferred to the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels in 1964 Colonial Collections.
Framework Limitations:
The HOME project was launched as a research collaboration between seven institutions, with the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences as project coordinator, not as a governmental working group. In Belgium, there are currently no guidelines for the conservation and management of human remains, nor a legal framework for the return of human remains to family members, institutions or countries of origin. Human remains require separate bilateral negotiations outside the legislative framework. The 2022 Belgian Restitution Bill explicitly excludes archives and human remains from its scope.
