Antwerp to erect monument for Congolese victims of World Fair

The city of Antwerp will erect a monument, a cenotaph, at the Schoonselhof cemetery to commemorate the seven Congolese people who lost their lives during the 1894 World Fair. At the time, the Congolese were housed in a fake village that was supposed to mimic their daily lives.

A total of 144 Congolese people were brought to Antwerp for the World Fair, to be exhibited as part of a “human zoo”. Dozens of them fell ill on the way to Belgium or in the fake village, seven people did not survive. They lost their lives because of conditions such as dysentery and pneumonia.

The seven victims who died were buried at the Kiel cemetery, but their graves were later cleared. The city now wants to provide a memorial to the Congolese people at the well-known Schoonselhof cemetery and is doing so in consultation with the city's Congolese community.

“To understand our present, we have to look the past straight in the eye,” stated mayor Bart De Wever. “That is why this cenotaph for the Congolese people who died in 1894 is particularly necessary. Because they are an inseparable part of our history and of our city’s community. We wanted to keep the memory of their haunting story alive in a dignified, serene and visible place.”

^{#FlandersNewsService | The Schoonselhof cemetery in Antwerp on 30 November 2022 © BELGA PHOTO TOM GOYVAERTS}