"Exacting knowledge of our colonial domains; a scientific inventory that will guide us; the study of races and peoples who inhabit our colonies, including their history, their folklore, and all manner of their customs and traditions; generating further research and the best regulations, all on a scientific basis, which will preside over the government and administration of our colonies"
Mission Statement. Académie des Sciences d'Outre Mer.
"The conquering state does not possess property since it can at any time take possession of it. On th either hand, the natives cannot possess it, since they have no such idea... When we arrive in these new countries, the ground belongs to no one; it is an indeterminate state, which must be determined. Now this state can be determined only by exploitation and by creating value. The land must be given only to those who exploit it and make it useful"Jean Bruhnes
"Whether it is a matter of European settlements or the simple indigenous environment, the occupation of a populated country or taking possession of a deserted land, colonization would seem to reply upon the transformation of a region that has been retarded or neglected in the development of human potential. It therefore requires above all a perfect knowledge of the regions to be transformed"
George Hardy. Directeur de l'École Coloniale à Paris
No comments:
Post a Comment