Belgium has been ordered to compensate five mixed-race women who were forcibly taken from their homes in the Belgian Congo as children in a colonial-era practice labeled a “crime against humanity.” The landmark ruling by the Brussels Court of Appeal awards the women 250,000 euros in total for the moral damage caused by the abduction. The women, known as Metis, were among thousands of children kidnapped due to their racial makeup. The Belgian colonial authorities believed that bi-racial children threatened the white supremacy narrative they upheld to justify colonialism. Catholic missions played a key role in the abductions, separating the children from their mothers and sending them to orphanages or missionaries. Some children were born as a result of rape, and their identities and connections to their families were systematically erased. The court ruling has set a historic precedent for addressing state-sanctioned abductions and atrocities committed during European colonial rule. The lawsuit was the first seeking justice for Metis, and the ruling may encourage other affected individuals to seek reparations for past harms. While Belgium has acknowledged its role in the forced abductions, the court case highlights the lasting impact of colonial-era policies and the urgency of addressing historical injustices.
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