OMM Newsroom
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he is open to calls for a formal apology for the country’s historical role in slavery, ahead of next week’s Commonwealth summit, where he is expected to face demands for financial reparations, AnewZ reports.
In an article published in The Guardian on Saturday, October 31, Burnham wrote that Britain had proposed structured dialogue with those affected by the transatlantic slave trade. At least 12.5 million Africans were abducted and sold into slavery during the trade.
He said listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state would be an important part of the process, adding: “I am open to that.”
Burnham nevertheless ruled out financial reparations. He argued that current British citizens cannot be held responsible for historical injustices that occurred “in another era, under different laws, and in which they did not personally take part.”
Instead, Burnham said he wanted to launch a new initiative on debt. The proposal would help more vulnerable countries repay their debts over longer periods and at more favorable interest rates.
Between the 15th and 19th centuries, millions of Africans were sold into slavery by European traders. According to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database, Britain transported about 3.2 million people across the Atlantic. The trade was banned in 1833.
The summit of Commonwealth heads of government will be held in Antigua and Barbuda next week. Caribbean leaders are expected to press for reparatory justice, with demands often including debt relief, development financing, education, healthcare and climate resilience.
King Charles III, who visited the Caribbean ahead of the summit, said: “It is only right that we acknowledge the great suffering and injustices of the past.”
Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne called Burnham’s comments a significant and positive development and welcomed the practical assistance proposals. However, he wrote on Facebook that the Caribbean’s longstanding position on reparatory justice remained unchanged.
Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley also welcomed Burnham’s openness to a formal apology and his offer of dialogue, but said disagreements over reparations remained.
