The Handshake of the Victims
A global movement for reparations for slavery was given a boost at the 36th African Union Summit in Ghana this week, with the AU teaming up with Caribbean Community countries to form a “united front” to persuade European nations to pay for what the AU and Caricom described as “historic mass crimes”.
African and Caribbean delegates expressed their solidarity in demanding reparations for slavery. Photo: BNN
The partnership between the 55-member AU and the 20-nation Caricom will aim to increase pressure on former slave-owning countries to join the reparations movement. Delegates also announced the creation of an Africa-based global fund to accelerate the campaign.
A draft statement circulated at the end of the four-day conference did not specify what form reparations would take but said the AU would consider “litigation options” and work with the United Nations to assess “whether the acts of slavery against Africans constituted serious human rights violations at the time they occurred.” The final version of the “Accra Declaration” is expected to be released later this week.
Opening the conference, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo said: “The entire period of slavery meant that our progress economically, culturally and psychologically was stunted. There are countless stories of families being torn apart… You cannot quantify the impact of such tragedies, but they need to be recognised.”
“The entire African continent deserves a formal apology from the European countries involved in the slave trade,” Mr Akufo-Addo said, adding: “No amount of money can compensate for the damage caused by the transatlantic slave trade and its consequences. But it is certainly an issue that the world must face and can no longer ignore.”
African delegates traveled to Barbados in July to begin discussions on how to work together with Caribbean countries on the issue. As for Caricom, its Secretary General, Carla Barnett, told the AU summit in Ghana: “We are at a critical turning point in the global movement for reparative justice.” Barnett believes it is important for both blocs to “speak with one voice to advance the call for reparations.”
The Foreign Office said an official attended the conference “as part of standard diplomatic engagement”, but the UK government remains opposed to the concept of compensation.
What is the reaction to the calls for compensation?
Earlier this year, when asked by British Labour MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy whether he would make a “full and meaningful apology for our country’s role in slavery and colonialism” and commit to reparative justice?
British Chancellor Rishi Sunak responded “no”, adding that while it was important to have an inclusive and tolerant society, “trying to erase our history is not the right path and is not something we will focus our energies on”.
Mr Sunak’s approach is shared by new Foreign Secretary David Cameron, who travelled to Jamaica when he was prime minister in 2015 and acknowledged that slavery was “abhorrent in all its forms” but said he hoped “we can overcome this painful legacy”.
Military units garrison Elmina Castle in Ghana in 1883, which was once Africa's leading slave transit station. Photo: New York Post
However, some progress has been made elsewhere.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier recently expressed “shame” over the colonial atrocities his country inflicted on Tanzania. In 2021, Germany officially acknowledged committing genocide during its occupation of Namibia and announced more than €1.1 billion in financial assistance.
Last year, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte issued a formal apology on behalf of his government for the Netherlands' historical role in the slave trade, which he considers a crime against humanity.
During a trip to Nairobi last month, King Charles acknowledged “the abhorrent and senseless acts of violence against Kenyans” during their fight for independence. However, he stopped short of making a formal apology.
Compensation up to trillions of dollars
Delegates to the conference in Ghana said they were encouraged by evidence of growing willingness to accept the need to pay reparations.
They cited the University of Glasgow’s pledge to pay £20m to atone for its historical links to the transatlantic slave trade and the Church of England’s £100m reparations pledge to “redress the wrongs of the past” after its investment portfolio was found to have historical links to the transport of slaves. The “New Slave Heirs” movement, founded by descendants of some of Britain’s wealthiest slave owners, also backed the call for reparations.
Bell Ribeiro-Addy, who attended the conference in Ghana and chairs the national parliamentary group on reparations, said it was important to see the African Union join forces with Caricom. “It’s a big step forward. They’ve sent a very clear message that this is something that can no longer be ignored,” Ribeiro-Addy told The Guardian.
“I think everyone feels they are experiencing something very historic; people feel encouraged by the amount of work that has been done to create a global reparations movement,” said David Comissiong, Barbados’ ambassador to Caricom and vice-chairman of the country’s national task force on war reparations.
At the 36th AU Summit, delegates visited Elmina Castle, a major European slave trading post in Ghana where slaves were held before being shipped to the Caribbean, Brazil and North America. At least 12 million Africans were forcibly captured by European nations from the 16th to the 19th centuries and enslaved on plantations.
Caricom’s 10-point plan for reparative justice calls for a full formal apology, debt forgiveness and investment by former colonial powers in the education and health systems of affected countries. A recent report by the Brattle Group consultancy, commissioned by the University of the West Indies, estimated that the UK owes £18.8 trillion in reparations to the Caribbean islands after hundreds of years of colonial exploitation of the region.
Caricom's plan has also been approved by the AU and will be the target of struggle for countries that were victims of slavery in the coming time.
Nguyen Khanh
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