King Charles acknowledged “painful aspects” of Britain’s past as he sidestepped calls to directly address reparations for slavery at the Commonwealth leaders’ summit, saying “none of us can change the past, but we can.” commit ourselves… to learning its lessons.”
Charles was speaking to leaders representing 56 Commonwealth nations at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm) in the Pacific nation of Samoa, the first time he had attended the summit since taking the throne. In his speech, the king also addressed the climate crisis, development challenges and paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth.
Some leaders who attended Chogm hoped that Charles could use his speech as an opportunity to apologize for Britain's colonial past, and that this year's summit would commit to a discussion on the issue of restorative justice. Charles appeared to acknowledge the leaders' concerns but did not directly engage with the issue.
“Listening to people across the Commonwealth, I understand how the most painful aspects of our past continue to resonate. Therefore, it is very important that we understand our history to guide us and make the right decisions in the future,” he said.
“Where inequalities exist… we must find the right ways and the right language to address them. As we look around the world and consider its many deeply worrying challenges, let us choose within our Commonwealth family the language of community and respect and reject the language of division.”
There have been calls from some African and Caribbean nations for Britain – and other European powers – to pay financial compensation for slavery.
The Prime Minister of the Bahamas, Philip Davis, told AFP that a debate about the past was very important.
“The time has come to have a current dialogue about how to address these historic wrongs,” he said.
“Restorative justice is not an easy conversation, but it is important,” Davis said. “The horrors of slavery left a deep generational wound in our communities, and the fight for justice and restorative justice is far from over.”
On Thursday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer appeared to open the door to non-financial reparations for the UK's role in transatlantic slavery, as he came under pressure from Commonwealth leaders to engage in a “meaningful, truthful and respectful” conversation. about the situation in Great Britain. past.
While Starmer has ruled out paying reparations or apologizing for the UK's role in the transatlantic slave trade, a Downing Avenue source indicated that the UK could support some forms of reparative justice, such as restructuring financial institutions and relief of the debt. They also accepted that some reference to reparations would probably be included in the summit's closing statement.
In response to Starmer's decision to discuss “non-financial” reparations, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves – who was one of the founding leaders of the current reparations committee – highlighted the importance of a plan of reparative justice that addressed the lasting psychological and socioeconomic impact of slavery.
Arguing that the British had committed genocide and traumatized both indigenous people and enslaved Africans in SVG, he added that while the enslavers were compensated millions at the time of abolition, nothing was given to those who had been enslaved and oppressed.
“They had nothing to start with and build on: no land, no money, no training, no education,” he told The Guardian. This harmful legacy of slavery and oppression, he added, has continued to affect Caribbean nations.
Patricia Scotland, outgoing Commonwealth Secretary Universal, also referenced concerns about colonial legacies in her speech opening the summit, saying: “For 75 years, we have demonstrated an unrivaled ability to confound the painful history that brought us together and sit together as equals.”
Davis said the call for reparations “is not simply about financial compensation; “It is about recognizing the lasting impact of centuries of exploitation and ensuring that the legacy of slavery is addressed with honesty and integrity.”
Joshua Setipa of Lesotho, one of three candidates vying to be the next Commonwealth secretary, said reparations could include non-traditional forms of payment, such as climate finance.
“We can find a solution that begins to address some of the injustices of the past and puts them in the context of what is happening around us today,” he said.
In his speech on Friday, Charles also paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth and her commitment to the Commonwealth, which he said “has helped shape my own life for as long as I can remember.” He also addressed the challenges of development and the climate crisis.
“Lives, livelihoods and human rights are at risk across the Commonwealth, and I can only offer my every encouragement for action to be taken with unequivocal determination… If we do not, inequalities across the Commonwealth and beyond they would only be exacerbated, with the potential to fuel division and conflict. .”