A decades-long campaign to repatriate a sacred statue stolen from Cameroon during the colonial era has gained momentum, though its return remains entangled in political negotiations. The statue, known as Ngonnso’, embodies the history and identity of the Nso people, an ethnic group from the Northwest Region of Cameroon.
The effort to reclaim Ngonnso’ was initially sparked in 2018 when Sylvie Njobati’s grandfather, a pastor, shared the story of its theft with her. He recounted how German military officer Kurt Von Pavel removed the statue from Kumbo, the capital of the Nso’ kingdom, in 1902 and donated it to Berlin’s Ethnological Museum. His dying wish was for his granddaughter to secure its return to Cameroon.
Ngonnso’ is considered the founding mother of the Nso people and the wooden statue created in her likeness became a cultural cornerstone after her death. “We were never taught about it in school,” Njobati explained, “yet after researching the importance of it myself, I realised it was an opportunity to educate other people. If I could bring Ngonnso back, it would show how my people had survived the colonial era.”
Njobati launched the #BringBackNgonnso campaign, initially focusing on community engagement through talks in churches, schools, and local groups. A key element of her strategy involved creating a video featuring her grandfather’s plea, which she used to raise awareness and garner support. She too established a Facebook page, “the official restitution page for Ngonnso,” to amplify the campaign’s reach.
Early attempts to engage with German institutions revealed a procedural hurdle: restitution requests had to originate from official government channels – the king, local government, president, or embassy – rather than individual citizens. Undeterred, Njobati persisted, connecting with individuals and organizations working on decolonization within Germany.
A turning point came in 2021 when the Ethnological Museum announced plans to exhibit Ngonnso’ at the Humboldt Forum in Berlin. Njobati travelled to Germany to protest, presenting an official restitution letter and sharing the video of her grandfather’s plea with Hermann Parzinger, President of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation. “I played a clip of my grandfather saying how he would love to see Ngonnso returned. The room fell quiet,” Njobati recalled. “It was an incredible moment. My request of restitution was finally acknowledged.”
Tragically, Njobati’s grandfather passed away during that same week in Germany. “It was a challenging week, as I’d wanted to bring back Ngonnso before he passed,” she said. “But in our culture, when someone passes on, they transcend. The passing of my grandfather reminded me that life is fragile. If you have to do something, then now is the time.”
Following Njobati’s visit, the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation authorized its president to finalize an agreement with Cameroonian authorities for the statue’s return. A workshop was held in 2021, and the results were compiled in 2022, culminating in a formal confirmation of the decision to return Ngonnso’ in June of that year.
Despite this progress, Ngonnso’ remains in Berlin. The final step requires negotiations between Germany and the Cameroonian government, a process that has been stalled. Njobati notes that Cameroon has recently established a commission dedicated to recovering illegally exported goods, signaling a shift in national priorities, but the statue’s repatriation is still pending. “It’s frustrating as a lot of other people have passed without being able to see this happen,” she stated.
Njobati’s campaign has broadened the conversation around restitution in Cameroon, inspiring a renewed focus on reclaiming cultural heritage. She emphasizes that restitution is not merely about the physical return of objects, but also about reclaiming narratives and reshaping historical understanding. “Restitution doesn’t just mean the physical return of objects. It also means reclaiming our stories and reshaping our narrative, so we can tell our own stories,” she said. She recently participated in the Wakati Wetu Festival, alongside Amnesty International, to support grassroots campaigning for reparatory justice.
