UN Committee Says Countries Are Legally Obliged to Consider Slave Trade Reparations

• A UN committee published guidance stating that countries have current legal obligations to address the lasting effects of the transatlantic slave trade
• The committee described the guidance as a paradigm shift away from arguments governments have used to resist reparations claims
• Financial compensation alone is not enough, with the UN urging countries to open archives, revise public memorials and establish truth commissions

A UN committee has declared that countries are legally required to consider reparations for the transatlantic slave trade and take active steps to address the continuing legacy of racial discrimination.

The guidance, published on Monday by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), states that these obligations flow from a legally binding 1965 convention on racial discrimination rather than from laws that were in force during the era of the slave trade itself.

This comes after Ghana successfully led a continent-wide campaign in March this year to demand the declaration of the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans as the "gravest crime against humanity."

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CERD described the approach as a "paradigm shift" away from debates over historical responsibility, which governments have frequently cited to resist reparations demands.

The Guardian reported that the UN document, which carries weight and may be referenced in courtrooms, states: "States parties must implement comprehensive reparatory measures for people of African descent, covering all aspects of remedies."

The committee estimates that at least 12.5 million Africans were captured and sold into slavery between the 15th and 19th centuries, calling it the largest forced displacement in human history.

One of the central legal arguments used by states to avoid accountability has been the so-called intertemporality principle, which holds that they cannot be held responsible for acts that were not prohibited under the international law of the time.

The UN document directly counters this position, arguing that regardless of how the original acts are classified legally, countries are still bound by their present obligations under the convention to dismantle structural inequalities that persist today.

"Irrespective of the legal characterisation of the original historical acts, states parties remain bound by their present obligations under the convention to address structural inequalities," the document states.

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Reparations Beyond Financial Compensation

The committee made clear that monetary payments would not be sufficient on their own.

The guidance urges "transformative" measures, including the opening of national archives, the revision of public memorials that glorify figures connected to the slave trade, and the creation of independent truth commissions.

Calls for reparations, spanning official apologies through to direct financial compensation, have gathered international momentum in recent years.

However, opposition remains strong in several Western governments, who argue that current states and institutions should not bear responsibility for historical crimes.

Ghana's push for slavery reparations

Ghana has been at the forefront of moves to ensure continued justice related to the transatlantic slave trade. The country has received widespread praise for these efforts from the black diaspora.

In March, it had a successful resolution to declare the transatlantic slave trade the gravest crime against humanity, in which it secured majority support at the UN.

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Delivering a victory speech, President John Mahama, who championed the reparatory resolution on behalf of the African Union, recounted the events leading up to the UN address.

Ghana secured majority support for its resolution to declare the transatlantic slave trade the gravest crime against humanity, with 123 nations voting in favour.

According to the results, three nations voted against the historic resolution while 52 abstained.

The three dissenting nations were the United States of America, Argentina, and Israel, while EU nations also dominated the abstentions.

Countries like the UK have long rejected paying reparations, arguing that nations and institutions of today cannot be held responsible for past wrongs.

Source: YEN.com.gh