The Brussels Court of Appeal has condemned the Belgian state for crimes against humanity for its role in the abduction of children from Belgian-Congolese parents during the colonial period in Congo.
Five women — Léa Tavares Mujinga, Monique Bintu Bingi, Noëlle Verbeken, Simone Ngalula, and Marie-José Loshi — successfully sued the state after being forcibly removed from their Congolese mothers and placed in Catholic orphanages. The court ordered the state to pay €50,000 in damages to each woman and recognized their abduction as part of a broader colonial policy targeting children of Belgian-Congolese parents.
Between 1946 and 1950, these women were separated from their families under a system that affected an estimated 20,000 children across Congo, Rwanda, and Burundi. In 2019, Belgium issued an apology for the injustices, followed by the King’s expression of “deep regrets” in 2020. The case marks a significant step in addressing Belgium’s colonial legacy.
This decision underscores the principle of universal jurisdiction, which allows national courts to prosecute international crimes — such as genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, including child abduction — regardless of where they occurred or the nationalities of the perpetrators and victims. This principle ensures accountability when international tribunals are unavailable or ineffective.
The ruling is a historic first in Europe, marking the first time a colonial power has been held legally accountable for such acts.