Decolonizing heritage: Belgium's cultural diplomacy through museum decolonization and restitution of cultural artifacts

This thesis explores the intersection of cultural diplomacy, decolonization of arts and museums and restitution of cultural artifacts in a post-colonial context, focusing on Belgium’s cultural diplomacy with its ex-colonies, the decolonization of its Royal Museum for Central Africa, and restitution of cultural artifacts with the Congo. The aim is to uncover the links between the different concepts and determine whether the decolonization of museums and processes of restitution are manifestations of cultural diplomacy. Cultural diplomacy, serving as the theoretical framework, provides a lens through which to analyze the evolving dynamics between former colonizers and their former colonies. Moreover, this work adopts a case study methodology to examine the specificities of Belgium’s engagement with decolonization in the realm of arts and museums, including returns of colonial objects. The research question guiding this study is thus the following: How does the process of decolonization in the arts and museums, coupled with the restitution of cultural artifacts to former colonies, function as a mode of cultural diplomacy in Belgium?