Demands for restitution – a recent phenomenon? Early histories of human remains violations in Namibia

Abstract

Current demands by Namibian families and communities for restitution of human
remains and so-called ethnographic objects in European collections are rooted in
much longer traditions of restitution demands than is generally anticipated. In this
paper I discuss pre- and early colonial human remains violations and African protest
and resistance, which triggered principal restitution, demands and fostered a critique
of colonial scientific practices, all of which resonate in current restitution politics.