Elmina Slave Castle in Ghana, one of the major ports that were involved in the transatlantic slave trade. Wikimedia Commons
At their Accra meeting this Thursday, AU members agreed to press for reparations for the transatlantic slave trade and the inhumane treatment meted on the enslaved. The African Union members unanimously condemned slavery and apartheid and demanded reparations from the slave masters and their descendants. The leaders also called for the return of “looted resources” from the continent during enslavement.
According to the Associated Press (AP), the delegates agreed to establish a Global Reparation Fund to push for over due compensation for millions of Africans enslaved centuries ago during the Transatlantic Slave Trade. This year’s conference in Accra, Ghana, focused on the theme, “Building a United Front to Advance the Cause of Justice and the Payment of Reparations to Africans.
The Deputy Chairperson, African Union Commission, Dr. Monique Nsanzabaganwa said, “the call for reparations and justice for the victims of the slave trade and their descendants has never been more urgent. Adding that the detrimental affect continues to impact the socioeconomic situation on the continent.
Joseph Warkreh T-Toe is Associate Editor Emeritus of Funtimes Magazine. He holds an Associate in Journalism from the Ghana Institute of Journalism in Accra, Ghana. He once served as Foreign News Editor at the Liberia News Agency (LINA). He is author of The Voice My Silence, an anthology African poems and short stories (under revision), and two children’s books – Fatu and Lake Piso and The Adventure of Little King Dahhena. T-Toe also serves on the boards of Christ International Baptist Church and Tip Global Educational Resources (TGER) in Philadelphia.
