{"id":14401,"date":"2024-11-15T20:57:19","date_gmt":"2024-11-15T19:57:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/svjmedia.nl\/internationaljournalism\/?p=14401"},"modified":"2025-01-20T21:13:06","modified_gmt":"2025-01-20T20:13:06","slug":"brussels-and-the-legacy-of-colonialism-monuments-memory-and-calls-for-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/svjmedia.nl\/internationaljournalism\/14401\/brussels-and-the-legacy-of-colonialism-monuments-memory-and-calls-for-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Brussels and the Legacy of Colonialism: Monuments, Memory, and Calls for Change"},"content":{"rendered":"

In Brussels, the capital of Belgium and all of Europe, we can still find fragments of the colonial past of the Kingdom of Belgium. The city is full of colonial monuments that remind people of the colonization of the Congo by King Leopold II. These monuments have caused different reactions among people. Some people like them, while others see them as a reflection of a shameful past and call for their removal.<\/p>\n

During the reign of King Leopold II, From 1885 to 1908, he governed the Congo Free State as his private colony. Under his rule, the Congolese people suffered horrendous atrocities, including forced labor, violence, and mass murder, due to the ivory and rubber extraction industries. Up to 10 million Congolese have died during this time, a statistic that has motivated many Belgians to demand more recognition and understanding of these crimes. For many years Leopold II’s legacy was embraced in Belgium, where monuments and memorials in his honor can still be found all around the nation.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t