Protestors entered the grounds of the new Museum of West African Art (MOWAA) in Benin City, Nigeria, on Sunday.
The MOWAA project was initiated in 2020 and in part conceived to house the Benin bronzes looted by British soldiers in the nineteenth century. However, in 2023, the then-president of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, issued a declaration giving ownership of the artefacts to Ewuare II, the current Oba of Benin (the traditional ruler of the Edo people in Nigeria). Ewuare II has stated that he plans to display the bronzes in a museum of his own.
According to a statement from the museum, the protests appeared to stem from ‘disputes between the previous and current state administrations’. Meanwhile, a local resident told the BBC that ‘the frustration stems from what many see as a hijacking of an Edo project’.
Without the bronzes, MOWAA has shifted its focus and will show historical and contemporary works of West African art. It remains at the centre of a controversy about the rightful ownership of Edo artefacts. In its statement, the museum emphasised that ‘MOWAA is an independent, non-profit institution, of which the former governor has no interest financial or otherwise.’
The museum, which was supposed to officially open on Tuesday, has indefinitely postponed its opening events and has advised visitors not to come until the situation is resolved.
Read more what happens when looted artefacts return home?
