Calls for slavery reparations have intensified in Saint Lucia as leaders of 56 Commonwealth nations ended a week-long summit in Samoa on Saturday.
The leaders urged Britain to have discussions on reparations for its role in the slave trade.
The meeting marked a significant step toward acknowledging historical injustices, with the leaders stating that “the time has come for a meaningful, truthful and respectful conversation” on equity.
While the meeting did not specify what form reparations might take, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer clarified that discussions at the summit were not “about money.”
He reiterated, “None of the discussions have been about money. Our position is very, very clear in relation to that.”
Despite this, calls for reparations have been gaining momentum, particularly from the Caribbean Community and the African Union, which have long advocated for former colonial powers to address the ongoing impacts of slavery.
Aaron Alexander, president of the Iyanola Council for the Advancement of Rastafari and Pan African People criticised Britain’s refusal to even acknowledge the transatlantic slave trade as a crime against humanity.
Alexander argued that this refusal perpetuates the same mindset that justified slavery: “It’s about thinking that they are superior… and can do as they please, with no repercussions.”
Alexander pointed out that other nations have paid reparations for historical injustices, such as Germany’s payments to Holocaust survivors and even the UK’s past compensation to Kenya’s Mau Mau torture victims, underlining a double standard when it comes to addressing the legacies of slavery.
Earl Bousquet, Chairman of the Saint Lucia National Reparations Committee, also strongly criticised the UK’s current stance, noting that while the British monarchy has expressed regret, substantive steps toward reparations remain absent.
“Queen Elizabeth II conveyed many royal expressions of sorrow before her departure, and King Charles III has authorized research into the royal household’s role in slavery,” Bousquet noted.
He emphasised that Buckingham Palace’s lack of a formal apology is not a coincidence. “An apology would be a legal admission of guilt with a penalty to pay,” he said, suggesting that Britain is attempting to protect itself from the financial ramifications.
Bousquet further highlighted the irony in the UK’s history of compensating former slave owners, with the final payments made as recently as 2015, while disregarding reparations for the descendants of enslaved people.
“This history speaks volumes about where their priorities lie,” he stated, noting that British taxpayers, including many of African descent, unknowingly contributed to this compensation through their taxes.
The statements made at the summit also acknowledged the practice of “blackbirding,” which involved the coerced labour of people from places such as the Pacific Islands, highlighting the broad and enduring impact of colonial practices.
Professor Kingsley Abbott of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies described the commitment to dialogue as a “potentially historic breakthrough,” signaling the beginning of more in-depth conversations on reparatory justice.
Oh please 🥺 it’s history, in the past………get over it and move on to a better world.
We can’t change the past but only look forward to the future.
‘Not about money’???? Who are you trying to kid!? LOL. Thus Government is ALL about money, the whole island is about money.
Do you remember the days of slavery . How they beat us . we were oppress and was made to work as slaves for 400 years taken from Africa in captivity working planting sugar cane, cotton , tobacco 400 years of brutality an we never got paid they beat is they hang us they rape our women and feed our bodies to their dogs . This happen in the islands of the Caribbean for 400 years yet still modern day slavery still exist….
And deport all of them to their country with immediate effect. Strip their citizenship.
They could call all they want, the king has made it clear that the pass will remain in the pass. Both king and pm of England are not intertwining the call for reparations! The call is falling on deaf ears. Sorry.
Some of the ignorant comments I have read here over the years regarding to the issue of slavery reparations is nothing short of mind boggling. It’s only “us”, only “us”, are saying “we are not worthy “, only “us” don’t think we don’t have any self worth, only “us”….,,,.the depth of mental slavery is so far reaching to the point where a body of people thinks less themselves EVEN TO THIS DAY. The repercussions of this school of thought is still so damaging to todays society that we are not even saying we are black anymore, we are Brown or to be politically correct “people of color “ no one wants to say I AM BLACK and be damn proud of it. What our ancestors has endured on this island and elsewhere is so barbaric it’s unimaginable…..they have mange to erase and change the narratives to the point where some of us feels we are undeserving of reparations for the atrocities of slavery, it’s become a taboo just discussing it…..well done white folks for getting to he mindsets of the foolish amongst us, you have really got them programmed…..too bad this did not work on The Jews they were not having any of this and they were paid by Germany Denmark Russia Poland Sweden and so many others for their atrocities without delay or questioning “are they worthy “.
Why is there so much self-hatred in people of African descent? To the naysayers, if you don’t agree with reparation for wrong done to us the least you can do is acknowledge the brutality perpetrated on our foreparents. Pretend you are educated and aware of history.
It’s counterproductive to spew your ignorance in public. Mind you, in addition to the Jews being compensated for the atrocities committed against them, the Americans had to pay the Japanese for internment during WW2. The Japanese, on the other hand, had to give some form of reparation to Korean women used as sex slaves in also WW2. Why is it that anytime the question of reparation comes up for people of African descent you always get some numbskull quick to oppose the proposal without any critical analysis?