French lawmakers have passed a bill to simplify the return of artworks looted during the colonial era to their countries of origin.
The bill, which was unanimously approved by the National Assembly, targets property acquired between 1815 and 1972 and aims to streamline the process of returning cultural items to their rightful owners.
France still has tens of thousands of artworks and artefacts in its possession that were looted from its colonial empire, and the bill is designed to facilitate the return of these items.
President Emmanuel Macron has made it a political promise to return the cultural items, and has gone further than his predecessors in admitting past French abuses in Africa.
The bill has faced political wrangling in France, with some parties arguing that its scope should be extended or limited to certain countries.
