The President of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, apologized this Wednesday for the abuses committed by German colonial forces in Tanzania, during his visit to the Ruvuma region, where a massacre of native Africans took place at the beginning of the 20th century.
Between 1905 and 1907, German colonial troops massacred between 200,000 and 300,000 representatives of the Maji-Maji following a rebellion, according to data provided by historians.
Given this, the German statesman claims to feel ashamed of what German colonial soldiers did to their African ancestors.
“I bow to the victims of German colonial rule. As German President, I would like to ask forgiveness for what the Germans did to your ancestors”, said Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in Songea, according to a document made available to the France-Presse agency (AFP ) for the presidency, cited by Lusa.
The German colonial empire extended across several African countries, such as Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Namibia and Cameroon, having ceased to exist after the First World War.
Steinmeier’s visit to Tanzania comes at the same time as that of King Charles III of the United Kingdom to Kenya, who also condemned colonial abuses by British troops.
