Campaign for the Return of All Ethiopian Historical Artefacts on
The Occasion Of the Coming Ethiopian Millennium
Press Release
As Ethiopians celebrate their unique millennium this coming
September, it will be without their historical treasures looted in the past and
now in possession by several European countries.
The United Kingdom is one of the countries which still
hold lots of Ethiopian historical artifacts. Among them we find several ancient
manuscripts, Ethiopian crowns, tabots, or altar slabs, golden church
crowns, gold chalices, several processional crosses. All these and other
artifacts were looted almost 140 years ago during the British expedition
against Emperor Theodros of Ethiopia
in 1867-68.
Gabriel Berhanu Kassayie, a nine year old boy from the Rosary RC
Primary School, London
has raised a campaign and with his friends will hand a petition to 10 Downing
Street, on Sunday 17th June at 11am, asking the government
and Queen Elizabeth to
return all Ethiopian artefacts. Gabriel started the campaign after reading an
article by Prof Richard Pankhurst on the restitution of Ethiopian artefacts on
the occasion of forthcoming Ethiopian Millennium.
"I am doing this because looting
from Ethiopia and not
returning it is unlawful."
"I am going to Tony Blair's office on fathers’
day and this is my gift to my father, grandfather and all Ethiopia and
its children."
Gabriel Berhanu Kassayie
International justice requires all looted Ethiopian antiquities
be returned to Ethiopia . Demands for restitution have been made
in more recent years by the Association for the Return of Ethiopian Maqdala
Treasures (AFROMET) which is based in both Ethiopia
and Britain . The Ethiopian Millennium provides a perfect opportunity and the
UK government and Queen Elizabeth should take courageous steps and
return Ethiopia’s
historical artifacts to Ethiopia
and the Ethiopian people.
“These historical articles have no historical
or cultural significance to us here in the UK , and it is no surprise that little is known
about them in our schools. … We … are asking the UK government to take a lead
and return Ethiopian antiquities.”
From the Campaign statement