Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley has unveiled a revised manifesto from Caribbean leaders asserting the "moral, ethical and legal case" for reparations for centuries of enslavement. She spoke at a "historic" conference in Ghana aimed at advancing reparatory justice following a landmark UN resolution that declared the transatlantic slave trade a crime against humanity.
Updated Caricom Reparations Plan
The manifesto updates the Caribbean Community's (Caricom) 10-point plan for reparations from former colonial powers. It introduces new issues, including the disproportionate impact of slavery on women and girls. The plan now specifically calls for compensation for gender-based violence, noting that women comprised about 30% of the estimated 20 million Africans forcibly transported across the Atlantic. It also references estimates that at least 1.2 million enslaved women experienced sexual violence.
Mottley emphasized that "the compensation for gender-based violence and assault on family" is "no different from the compensation that has been awarded to other nationalities such as the Japanese."
Climate Justice and Indigenous Rights
The draft document, seen by the Guardian, asserts that climate justice and slavery reparations are "inextricably linked." It also stresses the need to support Indigenous peoples who were in the Caribbean before European arrival and suffered genocide.
Demand for Monetary Compensation
The document, yet to be ratified by Caribbean governments, makes clear that Caricom demands monetary compensation from Britain and other European nations, along with other forms of repair such as a formal apology, education, and training. It states: "Caricom demands monetary compensation as reparations from enslaving nations, monarchies, churches, institutions, corporations and families, for loss of life and uncompensated labour, loss of liberty, personal injury, mental pain and anguish and gender-based violence..." However, it does not specify an amount, describing the plan as a "collective vision for an approach to the pursuit of reparatory justice."
Historic Moment
Calling the conference a "historic moment," Mottley said: "We live in a world today where people call out people for everything... But yet we have not found the moral courage to state unanimously across humanity that this grave crime against humanity that persisted for centuries ought to be declared so by all." She added: "There should be no retreat on repair. The language... is not one of aggression... but it is one of the necessities for healing for humanity."
Background and Legal Arguments
Since 2013, Caribbean governments have sought recognition of colonialism's legacy and reparative justice. In March, the UK abstained from a UN vote declaring chattel slavery a crime against humanity, which passed with 123 votes in favor, the US, Israel, and Argentina voting against. Caricom's 52-page document includes explicit legal arguments, framing reparations as a global human rights imperative. It stresses that crimes against humanity have no statute of limitations, citing a 1968 UN convention. The manifesto uses strong language, highlighting the "failure of former colonial powers to apologise and make amends."
