President John Dramani Mahama has described the recent resolution declaring the Transatlantic Slave Trade as the gravest crime against humanity as a pivotal step toward healing and reparative justice for millions affected by centuries of injustice.
Speaking at a High-Level Special Event on Reparatory Justice at the United Nations Headquarters on Tuesday, March 24, President Mahama said the resolution represents a significant acknowledgment of the suffering endured by more than 12.5 million people over a 400-year period.
The event, held under the theme “Reparatory Justice for the Trafficking of Enslaved Africans and the Racialised Chattel Enslavement of Africans,” brought together global leaders and stakeholders to address historical injustices and chart a path forward.
“This resolution allows us as a global community to bear witness to the plight of more than 12.5 million men and women and children whose homes, community names, families, dreams, and futures were stolen from them over the course of 400 years,” Mahama stated.
He emphasized that his remarks reflected not only the position of Ghana but also that of Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, and the global African diaspora.
“I speak these words today not only for the people of Ghana, but also for the rest of Africa and the Caribbean, Latin America and the entire community of the diaspora, and indeed all people of good conscience throughout the world,” he added.
President Mahama further described the resolution as a profound moral and historical milestone, underscoring its importance in preserving collective memory and ensuring that past atrocities are neither forgotten nor repeated.
“This resolution is a pathway to healing and reparative justice. This resolution is a safeguard against forgetting,” he noted.
His comments come at a time of increasing global calls for the acknowledgment of historical injustices, as well as renewed conversations around reparations and the need for a unified approach to addressing the enduring legacy of the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
