Overview

• The National Assembly plans a July 7 vote to "declassify" the Djidji Ayôkwé drum, overriding inalienability rules in public collections to enable its return.
• Seized from the Ébrié community in 1916 and shipped to France in 1929, the three-meter, 430-kg drum was exhibited at the Trocadéro and Musée du quai Branly before its 2022 restoration.
• The restitution fulfills President Macron’s 2021 pledge and represents the first of 148 works that Côte d’Ivoire has officially requested.
• Critics note that only 27 colonial-era works have been returned since a 2020 law and say France trails Germany in inventorying and repatriating looted artifacts.
• Dati’s draft law, reworked after a Conseil d’État review, seeks to establish clear criteria for future returns and secure parliamentary approval by year-end.