Germany – Tanzania

During a visit to Tanzania on Wednesday, German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier expressed his shame for crimes committed under German colonial rule. “I would like to ask forgiveness for what the Germans did to your ancestors here,” Steinmeier said during a visit to the Maji-Maji Museum in the city of Songea. Tanzania was part of German East Africa, where one of the bloodiest uprisings in colonial history took place between 1905 and 1907. Historians estimate that between 200,000 and 300,000 members of the indigenous population were killed by German forces during the so-called Maji-maji uprising. Steinmeier promised that Germany is ready for a “joint reworking” of the past. /ritzau/