2023-09-02 14:41:00
The stunning images have been circulating on TikTok. The scene is truly amazing. Thierry Claeys Bouuaert, 73, is sitting on the ground on a loincloth. Around him, regarding forty customary chiefs face King Mwene Mwathisenge Lwembe Ngweji Musanya III. We are 6950 km from Brussels. In the DRC, in Itengo, territory of Sandoa, in the province of Luluaba.
We are witnessing a Mukanda: the enthronement of Thierry Claeys Bouuaert as a notable at the court of the king who reigns under the name of Musanya III. The Belgian pledges allegiance to the great chief of the Tshokwés, this Bantu people established in the Congo, Zambia and Angola where he comes from.
Thierry did not come alone. Five of his compatriots accompany him, including three ladies. They represent the association ‘Mémoires du Congo’ which has more than 600 members and seeks to perpetuate the historical ties of friendship between Congo and Belgium.
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When we find him, Thierry Claeys Bouuaert always says he is very moved. “Being accepted as an ethnic brother in such a ceremony in itself provokes intense feelings. There, during the ceremony, I feel all the burden of responsibilities and expectations that we will have to meet. I am dressed in the clothes of a notable, with the loincloth and the traditional Tshokwé headgear. My face was whitened with kaolin powder. Sitting on animal skins, the older customary chiefs renewed before us, according to their rank, their allegiance to the king. The new promoted chiefs are called the last. Then comes my turn to receive the title of Tshalaka, which means ‘representative of the king in distant territory'”.
zango love
The emotion is palpable in the photos and videos brought back from Sandoa. Solange Brichaut receives the name “Zango” (“love”). Marie-Ange Imperiali, that of “Tshiseke” (joy). Françoise Moelher-De Greef, Marc Georges and Robert Pierre are confirmed in their respective statuses of “Mwana Mahamba”, “Chikuvu” and “Hanga”.
The ceremonies are spread over several days. “Gradually, we interact with our Tshokwé brothers and sisters. We learn regarding their traditions, their culture, life in the village, in the savannah, in total immersion, cut off from the world. We traveled 12,000 km to get there via Africa from South”
The Tshokwe King at Tervuren
The ‘Belgian Tshokwés’ were not chosen at random. Their choice results from the will of the Tshokwé king and the process had lasted two years. The Tshokwé King even traveled to Belgium in 2022. He was received at the AfricaMuseum in Tervuren where, dressed in traditional clothes, he officially thanked the museum for the teams that have followed one another over time to protect the Tshokwe art collections and treasures and make them known to the world public.
“It should be emphasized that the Tshokwés are not asking for any restitution. On the contrary, they consider that through Tervuren, they have conquered the Belgian cultural space by means of their art which they are now asking Belgians to make known, by partnership, worldwide.”
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“Thirty years of self-flagellation”
The ceremony of allegiance is called the “mukanda”. Through it, a message is launched: “The Tshokwés have values to teach. A model of openness, solidarity and living together diametrically opposed to any desire for identity and community withdrawal.”
For Thierry Claeys Bouuaert, “we have, in Belgium, for thirty years, denigrated our history with the Congo. We have done self-flagellation on our colonial past. If this past and some of its dark pages are not forgotten, the The memory of the construction and organization by forced march of the Congo between 1908 and 1960 is also far from erased. At Independence, they enabled the Congo to enter fully into the concert of Nations. We We met interlocutors who project themselves resolutely into the future. What the Congolese and the Belgians were able to build together is still present”.
In the heart of Africa, the incredible enthronement of a Belgian as a Tshokwé customary chief. ©DR
In this regard, Thierry Claeys Bouuaert invites you to read the recent book by Professor Emizet François Kisangani, of Kansas State University, who suggests, with regard to the ‘Belgian Congo’, to “revisit colonialism”.
Images of the ceremony circulated on TikTok. They may have come as a surprise, but through the association Mémoires du Congo which he chairs, Thierry Claeys Bouuaert appeals to young people to open up and meet the young people of deep Congo. “In a supervised way, go to Sandoa. Go there in the dry season, with projects to be developed together: agriculture, establishment of orchards, construction of granaries, dispensaries, schools. You will be expected with open arms. Go there with humility and a spirit of listening. You will receive a lot. It’s when you get out of your comfort zone that you have the most beautiful encounters and get to know each other”.
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