France this week passed a law to simplify the restitution of art and artefacts looted from its former colonies and now held in public collections, a move designed to speed up the response to requests from countries in Africa. Senegalese philosopher Souleymane Bachir Diagne reflects on what the reform means in practice – and why he believes there's a case for some objects to remain in France.
The new law, approved by parliament on Monday, allows returns to be authorised by decree.
