France Open to Discussions on Niger Colonial Reparations
Over a century after France’s brutal 1899 Voulet-Chanoine mission in Niger, Paris has signaled a willingness to engage in dialogue over reparations, though it avoids acknowledging responsibility. The colonial campaign, which France waged to absorb Niger into its West African portfolio, saw thousands massacred, villages burned, and cultural artifacts looted—atrocities that remain largely absent from French and Nigerien education. A UN special rapporteur is now pushing France to open its archives and confront its colonial legacy. While France has acknowledged other African atrocities, it maintains a legal stance of non-retroactivity for this particular case. However, survivors’ descendants continue to seek truth, memorials, and eventually, reparations, despite years of repression. As the African Union designates 2025 the Year of Reparations, this case could spark wider conversations across the continent.
The Guardian
