France to Restitute illegally Exported Ethiopian Cultural Objects

ADDIS ABABA – The Embassy of Ethiopia in Paris on Tuesday extended its deep appreciation to the French authorities for finalizing preparations to restitute cultural goods illegally exported from Ethiopia.

The goods consist, among others, of a cross dating back to the 15th century, and neck rests from the end of 19th and beginning 20th century were seized at Paris Roissy Airport in March 2019.

The Embassy held fruitful discussions with the French Foreign Ministry Cultural Affairs Section and French Customs Authorities and reached an agreement on the restitution of the goods.

Accordingly, the restitution is planned to take place in June 2022, it said.

The restitution is a demonstration of the strong cultural cooperation between the two countries as they celebrate the 125 years of diplomatic relations.

It also highlights France’s strong commitment to restore illegally exported African cultural objects, the embassy said.

The planned restitution follows the Declaration of President Emmanuel Macron in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso in November 2017 pledging the restitution of African cultural goods to African countries.