Esteemed representatives of the family of the late Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba,
esteemed representatives of the African community in general and representatives of the Congolese community in particular,
esteemed attendees from cultural and scientific institutions or from exceptional societal commitment,
esteemed colleagues of the University of Antwerp,
dear friends,
I welcome you all to this special ceremony, here, in the ceremonial lecture hall of the former Belgian colonial university. Between 1920 and 1962, men received an elite education in this building to subsequently ‘govern’ the colonies. Here, in this lecture hall, the public defences of theses went on year after year. Here, in this lecture hall, diplomas were solemnly awarded year after year. And this building is now the heart of the university, as it has been home to the Rector's Office and central services for many years, until today.
The University of Antwerp is indirectly the successor to the colonial university. In 1965 staff from the former university were indeed integrated into the Rijksuniversitair Centrum Antwerpen (RUCA). The buildings were also transferred to the new university.
To the right of the Rector’s Office, there is a small monument, completely forgotten, overgrown by weeds and bushes, hidden by trees. It is a monument in memory of the Belgians from the Antwerp region who died in the Congo Free State, so before 1908.
In short, this historic area is filled with a past that we need to face.
This ceremony is not just about the history of our university and about Belgium and its colonial past. Because the way we deal with our past also illustrates the kind of world we want, the world we dream of.
The way we deal with our past also illustrates the kind of world we want, the world we dream of
Therefore, this is not just a ceremony about the past, but also about the future. What do we stand for, as the University of Antwerp? What kind of world do we want?
The world of tomorrow is not shaped solely through government policies or through educational, cultural and other societal projects. We build our society also through the way we treat each other, here and now. With values such as: respect, inclusion, trust, reconciliation, hope, love. We need to do this with credibility. And that, dear all, is why we are gathered here today.
Today, this lecture hall will be named the ‘Patrice Lumumba lecture hall’. An official naming ceremony is a ritual through which we connect. In the same way names reading does at a memorial ceremony. By giving ceremonial names, we show respect for the person as a human being and for the individual and their own life.
Patrice Lumumba became the first prime minister of independent Congo in 1960 and was assassinated on 17 January 1961. He was barely 35 years old. That murder happened in collaboration with Belgians and with the knowledge of the Belgian Government.
Lumumba denounced what a Belgian parliamentary commission also recently established about the colonial period: “colonial domination and exploitation, violence and atrocities, individual human rights violations, and racism and discrimination”.
In the decades since his death, Lumumba has – so to speak – transcended himself, and he has become an important symbol for emancipation, respect, equality, and human rights.
Very esteemed attendees, with the name we give to this lecture hall, we, firstly, pay tribute to the late Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba, offering support to his family and to all who cherish his memory out of respect for who he was and is.
We, secondly, refer to the co-responsibility that Belgium bears in his death, and this comes from an institution – this university – which is institutionally linked to Belgium and its colonial past.
We, thirdly, commit to putting our focus on the values Patrice Lumumba symbolises today.
We commit to putting our focus on the values Patrice Lumumba symbolises today
Hence this symbolic naming ceremony is also a commitment to the future for our university.
The debate around decolonisation is alive and well in general society, including at this university. This is no surprise, because those with a migration background (from Africa or elsewhere) still face structural racism, micro-aggression, or prejudice – even at our university sometimes. We are also faced with these challenges. We must continue to work hard and increase our efforts, to combat these inequality mechanisms to make our university a safe space for every student and member of staff. How will we achieve that?
The University of Antwerp is genuinely committed to the world of tomorrow. The Board of Governors is currently debating how to redefine our mission statement, with an enhanced focus on diversity, inclusion and respect. We have developed a strategic framework for Global Engagement, which will challenge us further in the coming years to critically reflect on the power dynamics affecting education, research and our international partnerships. In addition, we take initiatives that ensure our university can guarantee a safe space for everyone. We therefore consider it especially important to further strengthen our contact points for inappropriate behaviour, racism and discrimination.
We want to be a university where everyone can feel at home as much as possible
We want to be a university where everyone can feel at home as much as possible. To achieve this, the university operates not only top-down, but also bottom-up. Through our multifaceted curriculum with expansive courses, we aim to teach our students to not only become experts but also to become democratic citizens who look at the world with an open mind.
The University of Antwerp is investing in raising the awareness of and professionalising its teaching staff around the issue of diversity. We also urge our teaching staff not to approach curricula and teaching content solely from a Eurocentric perspective.
In our research, we aim to address the SDGs by strengthening international collaboration and solidarity, addressing global challenges and critically questioning work processes.
We are also deepening our tradition of intense collaboration with academics and partner institutions in the Global South.
Thus, decolonisation means critically addressing our historical legacy by analysing and deconstructing power systems. We pay particular attention to inequalities and exclusionary mechanisms, and to the Eurocentric or other knowledge dominance that arises from all this, which is often also normalised. Both in the past and today.
Decolonisation has nothing to do with cancel culture, it is the opposite: shining light on that which was and is not told and seen
Decolonisation has nothing to do with cancel culture, it is the opposite: shining light on that which was and is not told and seen. To build the world of tomorrow from there. No one should give up anything, instead we will enrich everyone’s humanity.
And so, dear all, today we officially name this lecture hall: the Patrice Lumumba lecture hall.
I now invite Her Excellency Mrs Juliana Lumumba to take the floor.