UNITED NATIONS, CMC – In a new report, the United Nations human rights office, OHCHR, says reparatory justice” is key to ending racism against Africans and their descendants, including those in the Caribbean.
The report, released on Wednesday, urges governments, academia, and other stakeholders to “double down on delivering reparatory justice” for people from the African Diaspora.
“Doing so is key to dismantling systemic racism that is rooted in legacies of slavery and colonialism.”
It states that actions include formal apologies, truth-seeking, memorialization, and educational measures, as well as medical and psychosocial support, along with compensation.
For the most part, the report states that, despite some rollback of commitments to racial justice, measures taken by states, businesses, religious groups, universities, museums, and others remain limited.
“To deliver reparatory justice, States and other actors must implement a comprehensive approach that includes reparations in various forms,” said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.
“To be truly effective, this approach must squarely consider the web of links between the past and the present – at the individual and societal levels, in all areas of life – to dismantle unjust structures and systems designed and shaped by the past,” he added.
Türk cautioned against a “one-size-fits-all approach”, as reparatory justice should respond to the demands of affected communities.
“Initiatives and processes should be grounded in history and local context, respond to evolving demands of communities, and center the specific experiences of women of African descent in particular,” he said.
The report recommends that Africans and people of African descent must guide the design and implementation of these measures through “meaningful, inclusive and safe participation.”
It also highlights initiatives already underway. For example, it says some countries have reviewed public spaces to identify, remove, or contextualize statues and place names linked to persons who were involved in the transatlantic slave trade.
The OHCHR said that museums in several European countries are also taking steps to address the links between their collections and the past.
It stated that the restitution of cultural heritage is ongoing, including the return of so-called “Benin bronzes” – centuries-old sculptures, plaques, and other items looted from what is now Edo State in Nigeria.
Additionally, the OHCHR stated that some academic institutions have conducted or funded external research into their own history, issued apologies, expanded educational opportunities for affected communities, and established memorials.
It stated that some business enterprises have also taken “clear steps” to acknowledge their past connections.
“Compensation claims have been lodged before courts in multiple jurisdictions, and associated legal arguments have bolstered wider public movements and fostered political pressure for change,” the UN rights office added.
The report calls for further research and policy proposals on broader structural and systemic issues, including those related to climate and environmental justice, as well as reforms to address the shortcomings of development aid and the international financial and governance architecture.
and then 