Growing global support for a tribunal on transatlantic slavery

Support is growing among African and Caribbean nations for the idea of setting up an international tribunal to address transatlantic slavery. This idea, proposed last year, aims to mirror the International Military Tribunal in Nuremberg, which was established after World War II to prosecute war criminals.

In June last year, the United Nations Permanent Forum on People of African Descent recommended the establishment of a special tribunal for slavery. Eric Phillips, vice-chair of the CARICOM reparations commission in the Caribbean Community, shared that regional bodies in Africa and the Caribbean discussed this idea.

While the exact scope of the tribunal's authority was not detailed, the UN Forum's preliminary report suggested it should handle reparations for slavery, apartheid, genocide, and colonialism. It's important to remember that from the 15th to the 19th century, at least 12.5 million Africans were forcibly shipped under European, American, and Brazilian flags and sold into slavery.

Spearheaded by supporters like CARICOM and the African Union (AU), which includes 55 African countries, efforts are underway to gather wide-ranging support among UN members for the tribunal.

Those favoring this initiative argue it would help establish legal standards for handling complex international and historical reparation claims. However, there's opposition, with a prevailing belief that current states and institutions shouldn't be held accountable for historical slavery.

The push to create an international tribunal for slavery faces significant challenges, as noted by Martin Okumu-Masiga, Secretary General of the African Judges and Lawyers Forum, which advises the AU on reparations. He mentions "huge obstacles" to its establishment.

One major hurdle is the lack of consent from states that participated in the enslavement of Africans. Notably, Portugal enslaved 6 million Africans, and Great Britain enslaved 3.2 million. Those who survived the treacherous journey faced inhumane conditions on plantations, primarily in Brazil, the Caribbean, and the United States, where they labored for the profit of white people.

The legal complexities of identifying responsible parties and determining remedies pose another significant challenge, given that no one directly responsible for transatlantic slavery is alive today.

"These events occurred many years ago, and obtaining or even verifying historical records and evidence can be difficult," said Okumu-Masiga, as quoted by Reuters.

When asked about the tribunal idea, the British Foreign Office mentioned there's no plan for reparations. Instead, they believe that past wrongs can be addressed by learning from history and addressing today's challenges.

Proponents of reparations argue that Western countries and institutions continue to benefit from the wealth generated by slavery and thus should be held accountable, especially given the ongoing legacy of racial discrimination.

"The tribunal would help establish an 'official record of history'," said Brian Kagoro, a Zimbabwean lawyer who has been advocating for reparations for over two decades.