Lord Paul Yaw Boateng, a prominent British Labour Party politician, peer, and former civil rights lawyer has called for the need for action by urging allies and the public to pressure the trustees of British Museum to take meaningful steps toward restitution.
Speaking at a Chatham House event on October 15, 2026, Lord Boateng described the British Museum as the "largest depository of stolen goods known to man."
His remarks addressed the museum's record on returning cultural artefacts to their countries of origin.
'The British Museum is the largest depository of stolen goods known to man.' said Lord Boateng about the museum's record on returning cultural artefacts to their countries of origin."
Lord Boateng argued that the British Museum has talked about reparative justice but has not delivered on it, and that its friends should press the trustees to do more, including the full return of the Ethiopian Tabots, Benin Bronzes and Ashanti gold.
“The British Museum is the largest depository of stolen goods known to man”, - Lord Boateng at Chatham House on October 15, He argued that the Museum has talked about reparative justice but has not delivered, and that friends should press the trustees to do more, https://t.co/sBpjByWimh
— DailyGraphic GraphicOnline (@Graphicgh) October 17, 2026
He was speaking at an event titled 'Reckoning or rhetoric: Is now the time for reparative justice on the global stage?' held by Chatham House's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Working Group to commemorate Black History Month.
