Goethe Institute honors Cameroonian princess

Marilyn Douala Manga Bell is a busy woman. Born in Cameroon in 1957, she co-founded the "Doual'art" center for contemporary art. She has become one of the most important art players in the central African country in recent years.

She has received great recognition because she uses art to initiate discussions about current issues of the day and the history of her country. "There are many artists who are content to create works that serve as mere decoration," says Bell. "But we want to work with artists who stimulate real discussions with their artwork."

Before founding Doual'art, she studied development economics at the University of Nanterre in France. She then worked for almost ten years for several non-governmental organizations in the field of rural development. Later, Bell became a consultant for several international organizations, including the International Monetary Fund.

After returning to Cameroon, she founded Doual'art in 1991 with her husband, art historian Didier Schaub. Through the art organization and Bell's commitment, many works of art have been financed in recent years and made accessible to the people of Cameroon's economic metropolis Douala. The most important project: "La Nouvelle Liberté" — "The New Freedom." This majestic, twelve-meter-high sculpture on the theme of recycling in Douala stirred controversial discussions among the citizens of Cameroon's largest city.

Goethe Medal for the princess

For her commitment to the arts, which has now spanned two decades, Bell has received a great deal of recognition — also and above all in Cameroon itself. The art critic and journalist Telesphore Mba Bizo says that Bell plays a decisive role in transforming Cameroonian culture."Marilyn is someone who deals with art issues with complete conviction. Marilyn is an exceptional person."

The Cameroonian princess is now receiving a prestigious award from Germany. The Goethe Medal is the official decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany for personalities who have rendered outstanding services to international cultural exchange. According to the jury's statement, Marilyn Douala Manga Bell has developed "highly regarded ideas for coming to terms with colonial injustice and consolidating Cameroon's own identity.

Bell family link with Germany's colonial era

One of the debates far from over is Cameroon's colonial period which is also closely interwoven with the history of the Manga Bell family. Marilyn Douala Manga Bell is the great-granddaughter of King Rudolf Douala Manga Bell, and therefore also holds the title 'Princess.'

King Rudolf Manga Bell is considered a resistance fighter and is celebrated as a national hero in Cameroon. An exhibition at the MARKK (museum) in Hamburg is dedicated to him. Rudolf, who had spent part of his youth in Germany and spoke perfect German, protested during the colonial period with letters and petitions against the exploitation and expulsion of his people by the German occupiers.

King Manga Bell also resisted plans to introduce racial segregation in Douala. On August 8, 1914, German colonial administrators, therefore, hung him for high treason. Three decades earlier, he had signed an agreement granting the German Empire the right to administer Cameroon.

Learning from history

"With my work today, I'm trying to come to terms with what my ancestors triggered at the time when they decided to sign this treaty," Marilyn Douala Manga Bell told DW: "This treaty meant the loss of sovereignty because it asked the Germans to administer Cameroon."

She said it is important to place the events of the colonial period in their historical context. This is the only way to understand and learn from history properly. "It is very interesting that some Cameroonians today claim that my ancestors sold Cameroon," Bell said. "The fact is that there was no alternative at that time because almost all African countries were colonized by European powers. This treaty, signed by my great-grandfather in 1884, was like a constitution, but this constitution was not respected by the Germans."

This led to open conflict between her ancestors and the German colonial rulers. Eventually, it resulted in a show trial that led to the death of her great-grandfather and several of his supporters by hanging, she explained.

Today, Bell seeks to promote a culture of remembrance of this event and other painful episodes of the colonial era. She advocates for equal rights for African museums and the restitution of cultural exhibits from colonial contexts. She adds that she does this as a tribute to her great-grandfather.

Next goal: A German-Cameroonian museum

Bell's next goal is to establish a German-Cameroonian museum in Douala that will help bring to light the important episodes in Cameroon's history. Another concern is the repatriation of some of the most important works of art illegally brought to Europe during German colonial rule.

In addition to Bell, the composer Toshio Hosokawa from Japan and the dancer Wen Hui from China will also receive a Goethe medal this year. The awards are traditionally presented on the birthday of the German poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe on August 28. However, this year, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event will be held virtually.

The award ceremony was organized in cooperation with Deutsche Welle and can be seen as a live stream on the Goethe-Institute channels.