Zuko Komisa
- Sixty-three Khoisan ancestral remains were reburied in the Northern Cape after being repatriated from Scotland.
- The remains were originally stolen for colonial-era racial research between 1868 and 1924.
- President Ramaphosa hailed the event as a vital act of ubuntu and a rejection of colonial erasure.
The ancestral remains of 63 Khoisan individuals have been returned to the Northern Cape, over a century after they were removed for unethical colonial research.
Stolen between 1868 and 1924 without consent, these remains were held by the University of Glasgow’s Hunterian Museum until their repatriation last year.
TODAY
President @CyrilRamaphosa will later this morning officiate the reburial ceremony of Khoi & San ancestral human remains to be held at the Kinderlê Monument in Steinkopf, Northern Cape Province.
The ancestral remains of those to be reburied total 63, following… pic.twitter.com/1Cp9NYAZ7v— The Presidency
(@PresidencyZA) March 23, 2026
At a reburial ceremony near Steinkopf, President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the historical erasure of Southern Africa’s indigenous peoples.
He criticised European powers for failing to offer full apologies for the broader atrocities of colonialism, asserting that South Africa would restore its own dignity through such acts of restitution.
The President described the homecoming as an expression of ubuntu, acknowledging a shared humanity that was long denied.
“As democratic South Africa, we do not linger in the shadow of unspoken apologies or deferred reckonings. We will restore dignity – on our own terms.” said Ramaphosa
This repatriation marks a significant step in addressing the legacy of race-based scientific exploitation and ensuring the deceased finally rest with dignity in their homeland.
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