TRANSFORMATION OF COLONIAL EXPERIENCE REFLECTION IN THE BELGIAN PUBLIC DISCOURSE

Abstract

In the article, the dynamics in the perception of the Belgian colonial experience in Congo are examined on the evidence of public discourse produced by public political actors in contemporary Belgium. Apart from the universally accepted postcolonial and decolonial optics, the authors suggest employing the five stages of grief model by Kübler-Ross, widespread in psychoanalysis. The concluding stage of acceptance took place in the 2020s caused mainly by public demand; it was performatively landmarked by the return of the Congolese prime minister's remains to his homeland. The authors demonstrate the complexity of the common historical experience reflection in the European and African states and the necessity of this reflection for the dynamic development of bilateral and multilateral ties.

Keywords

• belgium
• congo
• postcolonialism
• colonial system
• national liberation movement
• national narrative
• social memory