President Akufo-Addo has stated that Ghana and all other African countries who suffered the ferocious experience of the transatlantic slave trade will continue in their efforts to ensure that those who carried out those set of transactions are made to pay appropriate reparations.
The President reiterated this commitment to demand reparations when he spoke at an event orgainsed by the United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) at the site of the Ark of Return, a permanent memorial that was erected to honor victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade at the United Nations (UN) headquarters 30 years ago on Monday, 23 September 2024.
President Akufo-Addo said with the full support of the African Union (AU) after the Accra Reparation Conference which was held last year in Ghana, he is certain that a global commission will soon be set up to champion the efforts for the payment of reparation.
“Ghana has quite a big responsibility for the slave trade. 75 percent of the slave castles for which the trade passed through are situated on Ghana soil, so we are particularly involved in the events and what has happened since. This is why last year; we convened the Accra reparations conference to focus the mind of the world on the steps that need now to be taken.
“In our view, three things are critical; One, we gather the global African family together like what is happening today to say that we will not ever again experience such a barbaric and inhumane set of transactions and we make a firm commitment never to subject the Africa people to this inhumane practice,” President Akufo-Addo said.
“Secondly, to use the occasion of our coming together to make a clear statement to the world as to how we see the forward movement of the African peoples as a result of this tragic experience and that is how we have now come to champion first of all, “the year of return,” that saw so many people from the global African family coming back to Ghana to reconnect.
“Thirdly, to make the demand which is now on the table for reparations. The Accra reparations conference went a long way in making some important decisions about the need to establish a global commission on reparations which will then fuel the conversation and chat a way forward in being able to arrive not just at the reparations but also at the process of healing and the process of reconciliation that is an inevitable part of the process,” Akufo-Addo further stated.
True compensation
In his remarks, President Akufo-Addo noted that the African continent is “looking at the exercise of reparations for this set of events (the slave trade) as something that compensates for more than just money. We are looking at also an instrument for development and for restating the dignity of the African people.”
“We know that the exercise involving reparation is not going to be straightforward and easy, but it is extremely important that we begin and hopefully, as a result of what took place in Accra, (the reparations conference) now that we have the commitment of the African Union and its entirety to the process, that we are going to see something very concrete and worthwhile,” President Akufo-Addo further remarked.
Free from slavery
Audrey Azoulay, Director-General of UNESCO in her opening statement announced a new initiative between UNESCO, Brazil, Colombia, Congo, France, Jamaica, and the Netherlands to name places of remembrance and slavery museums in their respective countries.
She further stated that may the entire world, acknowledge, consider, and remember and may the world through knowledge, memory, remembrance, and international mobilisation, free ourselves once and for all, from slavery.
Enduring tragedies
Philemon Yang, President of the 79th UN General Assembly, on his part, pointed out that the transatlantic slave trade was one of humanity’s greatest and most enduring tragedies and it is ever-present. He added that the world can always know that we can change our past.
“While centuries may have passed, the impact and echoes of the slave trade carry on. People on both sides of the Atlantic are reminded by what happened. Not only the people near the Atlantic but people all over the world. We are asked, almost instructed to remember and to rejoice that we can celebrate our legacy,” Philemon Yang said.
Background
Within the Transatlantic Slave Trade and for more than 400 years, 15 million African men, women, and children were forcibly captured, sold, and held in brutal conditions far from their homes. This tragic phenomenon, fueled by the multiplication and growth of colonial economies reliant on slavery, not only uprooted and dehumanised millions, but also obstructed efforts toward peaceful development.
The legacy of this dehumanising practice has thus perpetuated persistent racism and discrimination, especially against people of African descent. However, while the history of enslavement was marked by brutality and suffering, it did not erase the courage, resilience, quest for freedom and universal human rights, and a profound sense of pride for Africans and people of African descent.
This relentless pursuit has shaped our modern world and continues to influence our societies today. The contributions of enslaved Africans and their descendants have significantly advanced societal progress, as evidenced in art, cuisine, literature, music, government leadership, science, and countless other fields.
This year marks the 30th anniversary of the UNESCO Routes of Enslaved Peoples Programme, which has significantly advanced a better understanding of the history and impact of enslavement through research, knowledge production, and awareness-raising campaigns.
Established in 1994 through the joint initiative of Benin and Haiti, the Programme has driven targeted advocacy efforts that culminated in the United Nations formally recognizing the Transatlantic Slave Trade and enslavement as crimes against humanity in 20011.
Through the years, it has maintained the visibility of this issue by producing analysis and research and establishing a network of places of memory, as well as educational materials and initiatives to raise awareness of the history and impacts of slavery.
The programme has also produced flagship publications that aim to develop a methodology on the issue of reconciliation, and to raise awareness among young people in an educational way about the history of slavery and its contemporary consequences.
A high-level moment in recognition of enslaved peoples and their important contributions to society as the international community adopts a new Pact for the Future, global leaders will come together and honor enslaved peoples’ and their descendants’ resilience and recognise their invaluable contribution to humanity and societal progress.
Source: Asaaseradio
