By Hannah Dadzie
Ghana is seeking to shift the global reparations conversation from rhetoric to action, as President John Dramani Mahama prepares to table a resolution at the United Nations on March 25 to declare the transatlantic slave trade the gravest crime against humanity.
In an interview on RT, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa says the move is intended to push the international community beyond expressions of regret toward formal acknowledgement, restitution and concrete reparative measures for Africans and people of African descent.
According to him, the initiative marks a significant diplomatic effort to secure justice for one of history’s most devastating atrocities, which saw more than 12.5 million Africans forcibly removed from the continent and trafficked across the Atlantic under brutal conditions.
“The resolution President John Dramani Mahama will be tabling at the United Nations on the 25th of March is a consequential one. It seeks to declare the transatlantic slave trade as the gravest crime against humanity,” Mr. Ablakwa said.
He said while the horrors of slavery are well documented, the global response has fallen short of the seriousness with which other crimes against humanity have been addressed.
“We have not seen that same approach, that same seriousness with the transatlantic slave trade,” he said, arguing that the time has come for the international community to take meaningful action.
Mr. Ablakwa said Ghana’s proposal is not meant to inflame tensions, but to encourage honest reckoning with history and collective efforts at redress.
“We are not being confrontational. We are doing this in a very conciliatory manner. We want an acknowledgement of history,” he added
Beyond symbolic recognition, the Minister said the resolution is expected to strengthen calls for reparatory justice, including support for education, entrepreneurship, skills development and empowerment for communities still living with the effects of slavery and racial inequality.
“The reparations we seek is not financial support to go to political leaders. Not at all. We are putting together a framework that will support the people, the real victims,” he noted
The Foreign Affairs Minister also said Ghana is demanding the return of stolen African artifacts, describing them as vital to the identity, heritage and spiritual life of the continent.
“There are also millions of artifacts that were stolen. We are demanding that they are returned to the continent. We want restitution,” he said.
Mr. Ablakwa said Ghana’s push has already gained broad international backing. He noted that all 54 African Union member states endorsed the resolution at the last AU Summit in Addis Ababa, while CARICOM and several countries in Asia and the Gulf have also pledged support.
“At the last African Union summit in Addis Ababa, all 54 member states of the African Union voted in support of this resolution. Not a single member state abstained,” he said.
He added that Ghana is optimistic the coalition it has built will be strong enough to secure passage of the resolution at the UN.
For Ghana, the campaign also carries deep historical significance. Mr. Ablakwa said the country’s forts and castles, which served as holding points for enslaved Africans before their shipment across the Atlantic, make it a central voice in the call for justice.
“Ghana is a crime scene because we host the highest number of forts and castles where millions of Africans were taken through the door of no return,” he said.
He stated that the African Union had therefore asked President Mahama to champion the cause on behalf of the continent. Mr. Ablakwa acknowledged that the road to reparatory justice would not be easy, but maintained that Ghana believes formal UN action could mark the beginning of a more serious global response.
“I am an eternal optimist. President Mahama is also an eternal optimist. He knows that the road will not be easy. It will be bumpy. There will be many hurdles put on our path. But we are very confident that we will succeed,” he said.
With the March 25 tabling date approaching, Ghana’s move signals an attempt to transform a long-running moral and political argument into a formal multilateral process at the world’s highest diplomatic forum.
