Slavery reparations not about cash transfer, British foreign secretary says

ZIMSPHERE 

When it comes to the touchy issue of slavery reparations for the United Kingdom's role in the slave trade, there is not going to be a “transfer of cash” to the affected descendants, British foreign secretary said, stressing that his country's position on the issue is titled towards the future instead. 

Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Lammy attends a meeting with Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Friday, Oct. 18, 2024. [Image: Florence Lo/Pool Photos via AP]

During a visit to Nigeria, Britain’s Foreign Secretary David highlighted to the BBC that being a descendant of enslaved people with his parents from Guyana, he recognizes that slavery was “horrendous” and had left “scars.”

However, people want to think about the future and not to debate about reparations, Lammy said, citing the financial angst and distress prevalent in the UK. 

“It’s not about the transfer of cash, particularly at a time of a cost-of-living crisis around much of the globe, and certainly in the U.K.,” he said.

Lammy said Britain is pursuing a new approach to relations with African nations that will deliver on “respectful partnerships that listen rather than tell, deliver long-term growth rather than short-term solutions and build a freer, safer, more prosperous continent.”

The contentious issue of slavery reparations has been continuously gaining traction, and it recently came to the fore at the recent 27th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting where leaders called for a “ meaningful, respectful and truthful ” discussion of reparatory justice. Calls for reparations are growing as many assert that the UK made significant wealth for itself and to sustain the empire through the slave trade, infamous through the course of history for its egregious atrocitie. The UK has never formally conveyed any apologies for its role in the transatlantic slave trade. 

At this year's Commonwealth summit, King Charles III indirectly acknowledged the calls for reparations but added the past could not be changed. He instead urged leaders to find the “right language” and an understanding of history “to guide us towards making the right choices in future where inequality exists.”

(with news agencies)