Gabon’s Repatriation of Fang Ancestral Skulls

Wɔatwerɛ nsɛm wei wɔ Asante Twi mu

Gabon, a Fangfoɔ na ɛte hɔ no yɛ nnipakuo a wɔdɔɔso wɔ Central Africa no mu baako no abɔ mmɔden sɛ wɔbɛsane anya Fangfoɔ nananom nkataboɔ, ahenkyɛ, ne nkataanim kronkron a wɔfomm wɔ nnisoɔ berɛ mu no. Saa nnoɔma yi yɛ nnoɔma a ɛho hia wɔ Fang amammerɛ mu, na ɛfa honhom mu, amammerɛ, ne abusua ho nsɛm ho^[1].

Fang ahoni ho adwuma ho amammerɛ ne honhom fam dwumadie

Fang nananom nkatabo, a wɔtaa kyerɛ wɔ ahenkyɛ a ɛbɔ wɔn ho ban (añgokh-nlo-byeri anaa bieri) mu no, wɔ nananom ne abusua mu akannifo a wɔwɔ obu no nnompe a aka no. Saa nneɛma yi yɛ tetefo a wɔsom wɔn a wɔde wɔn di dwuma wɔ amanne ahorow a wɔde bɔ nkurɔfo ho ban, wɔsa wɔn yare, na wɔde wɔn kɔ nnipa mu no mu nsɛntitire^[2]

Mpɛn pii no, wɔhwɛ ahoni no ti so a, wɔhwɛ no te sɛ nea ɛyɛ koma, na wɔn anim nso yɛ akutu, na wɔhyehyɛ no nnuhwam mu, na wɔhyɛ ahoni no mu den de kyerɛ sɛ wɔwɔ nananom a wofi mu^[3].

Nnipa a wɔfaa wɔn nnomum ne donkomi ho ntawantawa

Berɛ a na Francefoɔ retrɛ wɔn amammerɛ mu wɔ afeha a ɛto so 20 no mfitiaseɛ no, na wɔn a wɔhyɛ amammerɛ ase no taa yi Fang nneɛma no fi hɔ - mpɛn pii no, na ɛyɛ nea mmara mma kwan. Wogye di sɛ René-Victor Fournier, a na ɔyɛ Franse amammui amrado no, nyaa Ngil nkataanim a wɔde di afahyɛ no bi bɛyɛ 1917 mu. Akyiri yi, wɔtɔn nkataanim yi wɔ France, na ɛde asɛm baa mmara mu^[4]

2022 Montpellier boɔ a wɔtɔnee no maa wɔn a wɔhwɛe no ho dwirii wɔn: wɔtɔn nkataanim bi a wɔtɔnee no €150 maa no €4.2 million, na ɛmaa wɔnyaa mfasoɔ kɛse, na wɔdaa baabi a ɛfii a na ɛyɛ akyinnyegyeɛ no adi^[5]

Gabon mmara, nkɔmmɔbɔ, ne ɔmanfoɔ asɛnnie

Nea Gabon man no yɛe wɔ ho ne sɛ, wɔde wɔn kɔɔ France asɛnnibea kɔbɔɔ wɔn sobo sɛ "wɔagye nneɛma a wɔawia" na wɔpɛe sɛ wɔbu wɔn ani agu agu aguadi no so. Asɛnni no kyerɛ sɛ, sɛ obi nya saa nneɛma kronkron yi bi a, ɛtia ɔbra pa ne apam a na ɛwɔ hɔ wɔ bere a na wɔyɛ abibifo no^[2].

Berɛ koro no ara, Fang amammerɛ mu akannifoɔ ne Gabonese amanɔne mu akuw hyɛɛ adwadie afie te sɛ Sotheby's sɛ wɔnnyae amammerɛ mu nneɛma a wɔtɔn no. Wɔ afe 2023 mu no, wɔhyɛɛ Sotheby's ase sɛ wɔntwe ɔfa a wɔato din Fang a ɛwɔ afeha a ɛto so 19 mu no mfi gua mu esiane sɛ ɛyɛ kronkron nti^[6]

Nnoɔma a wɔsan de mae ho nsɛm a ɛkyɛn so

Saa nneyɛe yi ba bere a nnipa a wɔwɔ France ne Europa nyinaa repɛ sɛ wɔsan de nnoɔma a wɔde dii dwuma wɔ nniso ase no kɔ wɔn man mu no. Bere a France de nneɛma a ɛwɔ ɔman no tete nnoɔma akorae mu, te sɛ Benin ne Senegal nneɛma a wɔde kɔmaa aman afoforo no, wɔn a wɔde wɔn ankasa nneɛma kɔmaa aman foforo no da so ara yɛ asɛm wɔ ɔman no mmara mu

Gabon ka sɛ wɔmfa nhyehyɛe a ɛbɛma wɔasan de nnoɔma a wɔagye afi ɔman no mu ama ɔmanfoɔ, na wɔasan nso de nneɛma a wɔagye afi ɔman no mu ama ankorankoro, a nnoɔma a wɔde asie wɔ France, Switzerland, ne United States ka ho^[6]^[7].

Abrabɔ ne amanyɔsɛm ho nsusu ho

Ahodua no ne mmɔden a wɔrebɔ sɛ wɔbɛyi nimdeɛ afi wɔn nsam na wɔasan de amammerɛ mu agyapadeɛ a wɔatu afi wɔn man mu no asi hɔ (Wikipedia, 2024) . Wɔ Fangfo fam no, wɔn nananom mpokyerɛ nyɛ nneɛma bi kɛkɛ - wɔyɛ abusua a wofi mu ne wɔn nipasu ho sɛnkyerɛnne a ɛte ase. Wɔn a wɔbɛsan aba no ho hia na ama wɔatumi asan asiesie wɔn amammerɛ na wɔakɔ so atena hɔ daa.

Nea ɛne eyi bɔ abira no, wɔn a wɔboaboa nneɛma ano ne tete nneɛma akorae ahorow no kyerɛ sɛ mmara a ɛwɔ hɔ, nokware a wɔde dii dwuma, ne nwomasua mu mfaso no ma ɛyɛ den sɛ wɔbɛsan agye nneɛma no. Wɔ aman pii mu no, sɛ obi pɛ sɛ ɔboaboa nneɛma ano a, ɛsɛ sɛ onya adanseɛ a ɛkyerɛ sɛ wɔaboaboa nnoɔma ano wɔ ɔkwan a ɛmfata so - ɛyɛ ɔhaw berɛ a wɔn a wɔboaboa nnoɔma ano no nnim baabi a ɛfiri^[2] no.

Mmoano

Gabon's campaign to repatriate Fang ancestral skulls and sacred objects mixes legal advocacy, diplomatic negotiation, and cultural mobilization. Gabon's campaign to repatriate Fang ancestral skulls and sacred objects mixes legal advocacy, diplomatic negotiation, and cultural mobilization. Gabon's campaign to repatriate Fang ancestral skulls and sacred objects mixes legal advocacy, diplomatic negotiation, and cultural mobilization. Gabon's campaign to repatriate Fang ancestral skulls and sacred objects mixes legal advocacy, diplomatic negotiation, and cultural mobilization. Ɛma yehu hia a nnipa nnompe yi ho hia no, ɛnyɛ sɛ nnipa ho nsɛm a ɛyɛ nwonwa, na mmom sɛ agyapade kronkron. Saa asɛm yi ma yɛhu nsonsonoe a ɛda amammerɛ mu mmara ne wiase nyinaa gyinapɛn ahorow a ɛreyɛ nsakrae a ɛhwehwɛ sɛ wɔde atɛntrenee a wɔde siesie bɔne no di kan no ntam. Nea ebefi mu aba no betumi ama Afrika amammerɛ agyapade a wɔde bɛsan ama no no ayɛ kɛse.

Mmeaeɛ a menyaa mmoa firiiɛ

↑ Bartosz Atroszko (2015-09-03), Do young people trust Wikipedia?, vol. 4, Publishing Society, pp. 109–114, doi:10.18638/eiic.2015.4.1.485, retrieved 2025-07-02
1 2 3 N. Di Ferrante, R. D. Leachman, P. Angelini, P. V. Donnelly, G. Francis, A. Almazan, G. Segni, C. Franzblau, R. E. Jordan (1975), "Ehlers-Danlos type V (X-linked form): a lysyl oxidase deficiency", Birth Defects Original Article Series, vol. 11, no. 6, pp. 31–37, ISSN 0547-6844, PMID 101, retrieved 2025-07-02{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ What Orthopaedic Surgeons Should Know About Microbiology, 2024-08-30, retrieved 2025-07-02
↑ Paolo de Matthaeis, David Draper, Joel T. Johnson, Steen Savstrup Krinstensen, Yan Soldo, Thomas Von Deak, Mohammad Al-Khaldi, Rashmi Shah (2019-09), Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) Observed Over Water Surfaces at 18.6–18.8 GHz and the IEEE GRSS Involvement with ITU-R to Address this Issue, IEEE, pp. 1–6, doi:10.23919/rfi48793.2019.9111824, retrieved 2025-07-02 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ Don Flynn (2007-03-19), "Repatriation", African American Studies Center, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-530173-1, retrieved 2025-07-02
1 2 Thibault M. (2023), Group market survey from a market in western Gabon from June 1997 and May 1998, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), retrieved 2025-07-02
↑ Lynda R. Day (2020), "African Women Traditional Chiefs and Rulers", The Palgrave Handbook of African Women's Studies, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 1–17, ISBN 978-3-319-77030-7, retrieved 2025-07-02

[1] Bartosz Atroszko (2015-09-03), Do young people trust Wikipedia?, vol. 4, Publishing Society, pp. 109–114, doi:10.18638/eiic.2015.4.1.485, retrieved 2025-07-02

[:0-2] 1 2 3 N. Di Ferrante, R. D. Leachman, P. Angelini, P. V. Donnelly, G. Francis, A. Almazan, G. Segni, C. Franzblau, R. E. Jordan (1975), "Ehlers-Danlos type V (X-linked form): a lysyl oxidase deficiency", Birth Defects Original Article Series, vol. 11, no. 6, pp. 31–37, ISSN 0547-6844, PMID 101, retrieved 2025-07-02{{citation}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[3] What Orthopaedic Surgeons Should Know About Microbiology, 2024-08-30, retrieved 2025-07-02

[4] Paolo de Matthaeis, David Draper, Joel T. Johnson, Steen Savstrup Krinstensen, Yan Soldo, Thomas Von Deak, Mohammad Al-Khaldi, Rashmi Shah (2019-09), Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) Observed Over Water Surfaces at 18.6–18.8 GHz and the IEEE GRSS Involvement with ITU-R to Address this Issue, IEEE, pp. 1–6, doi:10.23919/rfi48793.2019.9111824, retrieved 2025-07-02 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

[5] Don Flynn (2007-03-19), "Repatriation", African American Studies Center, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0-19-530173-1, retrieved 2025-07-02

[:1-6] 1 2 Thibault M. (2023), Group market survey from a market in western Gabon from June 1997 and May 1998, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), retrieved 2025-07-02

[7] Lynda R. Day (2020), "African Women Traditional Chiefs and Rulers", The Palgrave Handbook of African Women's Studies, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 1–17, ISBN 978-3-319-77030-7, retrieved 2025-07-02

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