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Reparations Now!

Sep 22, 2013 Editorial

 

Last June, in our editorial “Justice Denied”, we pointed out that even though the Organisation for African Unity (OAU) took up the call for Reparations in 1993 in their Abuja declaration, there was never much enthusiasm from official quarters in pressing the demands.
This lacuna was created primarily because these leaders wanted to pander to western countries to collect “aid”. In the 2001 UN Durban Conference against Racism, the Final Document declared: “We acknowledge that slavery and the slave trade… are a crime against humanity, and should always have been so, especially the transatlantic slave trade.”
This was a Declaration that was supposed to galvanise the world into action: there is no statute of limitations against genocide. Yet sadly, the matter of reparations again was again placed on the back burner. At the official celebrations of the 50th Anniversary of the formation of the OAU (now the African Union -AU) in May, not a word was mentioned.
But in the side conferences, it is to the credit to the Caribbean that Professor Hillary Beckles from UWI delivered a powerful lecture based on his book ‘Britain’s Black Debt: Reparations for Caribbean Slavery and Native Genocide’. In detailing undisputed facts relating to the harms of slavery, he reiterated the necessary first step to securing reparations.
Professor Beckles and his colleague Dr. Verene Shephard have been unflagging in their efforts to place the issue of Reparations in every fora, including Caricom, where they were given a hearing. At the 34th Conference of the Heads of Government of CARICOM in Trinidad and Tobago in last July, in a milestone decision, the leaders agreed to the establishment of a National Reparations Committee in each member state.
The chair of each committee would sit on a CARICOM Reparations Commission while the  Heads of Government of Barbados (Chair), St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Haiti, Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago would provide political oversight.
In what could only be described as exhibiting unusual alacrity, last week, representatives of governments, civil society, academia and individuals fighting the cause of reparations for native genocide and slavery, met during September 15-17 for the first follow up activity. Guyana was represented by the Minister of Culture Dr Frank Anthony, Director of Culture Dr James Rose and Executive Member of the African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA). Unlike many other countries, Guyana has always been undivided on the issue of the demand for Reparations.
Back in 2007, when Britain held a year-long celebration of the 200th anniversary of its abolishment the despicable slave trade, President Jagdeo had observed caustically that now they had acknowledged their role, maybe they would take the next step of making reparations. This call was reiterated in 2011 during the UN sponsored, “International Year for People of African Descent” and again by President Ramotar earlier this year.
We believe that the time is ripe and right for the demands for reparations to be pushed to its conclusion.
As we pointed out in “Justice Denied”, at the beginning of June, in an historic out of court settlement, the British Government agreed to pay £20 million to some 5000 of Kenyan citizens who had fought for independence of their country but had been tortured by the colonial government. Foreign Secretary William Hague said the British Government admitted they had tortured many of the 25,000 Mau Mau fighters detained during the State of Emergency they had declared in 1952. He averred that the British did not condone “acts of inhumanity.”
We reaffirm our conclusion: “In 2011, the British High Court in London had rejected the veterans’ claims that the British Government should accept the liabilities of the colonial regime. However, it permitted demands for compensation to proceed and this was appealed by the government.
The decision of the British government  to pay the veterans changes the entire situation, not only in relation to the claims of the Mau Maus but to claims for reparations made against the British government for what they did to Africans and their descendants, who they brought as slaves to the “New World”.

 

 

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