King Charles tells summit the past cannot be changed as leaders ask Britain to reckon with slavery

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — King Henry III. Charles told a summit of Commonwealth nations in Samoa on Friday that the past cannot be changed, as he indirectly acknowledged calls from some of Britain’s former colonies to reckon with its role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

He told leaders in Apia that the British crown understood “the most painful aspects of our past continue to resonate”. But Charles avoided mentioning the financial reparations that some leaders at the event were promoting, instead encouraging them to find the “right language” and understanding of history that “will guide us in making the right choices in a future where inequality exists.”

Participating in his first Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), Charles said: “None of us can change the past, but we can devote our whole hearts to learning from it and finding creative ways to redress ongoing inequalities.” As head of state of Britain.

His remarks at the summit’s official opening ceremony were reminiscent of comments made a day earlier by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer that the meeting should avoid being stuck in the past and having “very, very long, endless debates about reparations”. The UK leader rejected calls by Caribbean nations at the biennial event for leaders to openly discuss redress for Britain’s role in the slave trade and mention the issue in a final joint statement.

But his handling of Britain’s involvement in the trans-Atlantic slave trade is seen by many observers as a litmus test for the Commonwealth’s adaptation to the modern world; Other European countries and some British institutions have also begun to embrace their role in this regard. trade.

“I think it’s time for this to be taken seriously,” said Jacqueline McKenzie, partner at London law firm Leigh Day. “No one expects people to pay every penny for what’s going on. But I think there needs to be negotiations.”

McKenzie said such a policy would be costly and divisive.

The UK has never formally apologized for its role in the trade in which millions of African citizens were kidnapped and transported to plantations in the Caribbean and America over several centuries, enriching many individuals and companies. Studies estimate that Britain will owe hundreds of millions to trillions of dollars in reparations to the descendants of slaves.

Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis said on Thursday he wanted a “frank” discussion on the issue with Starmer and that the leaders wanted to touch on the issue of reparations in their final statement at the event. All three candidates to become the next Commonwealth Secretary-General (from Gambia, Ghana and Lesotho) have endorsed restorative justice policies towards slavery.

Starmer told reporters on Thursday that the issue would not be on the summit agenda. But Commonwealth Secretary-General Patricia Scotland told The Associated Press in an interview that leaders would “absolutely talk about anything they want to talk about” at a special all-day meeting planned for Saturday.

King Charles said in his speech on Friday that nothing would fix inequality “more decisively than defending the principle that our Commonwealth is a place of real opportunity for all”. The monarch called on leaders to “choose the language of community and respect within our Commonwealth family and reject the language of division.”

He previously expressed his “sadness” over slavery at a CHOGM summit in 2022 and last year approved an investigation into the monarchy’s ties to the industry.

Charles, who is battling cancer, and his wife Queen Camilla will return to England tomorrow after visiting Samoa and Australia.

The Commonwealth’s late mother, Queen Elizabeth II, who was at times seen as a unifying figure between disparate and disparate states, said in a statement on Friday. He acknowledged that Elizabeth was “very important.”

The row over reparations threatened to overshadow a summit that Pacific leaders and the Commonwealth secretariat had hoped would focus squarely on the devastating effects of climate change.

“We have long since ceased to believe that this is a problem for the future because it is already undermining the development for which we have long fought,” the King said on Friday. he said. “This year alone we have seen devastating storms in the Caribbean, devastating floods in East Africa and devastating bushfires in Canada. Lives, livelihoods and human rights are at risk across the Commonwealth.”

Charles said it offers “every incentive to take decisive action to stop rising temperatures” by reducing emissions, increasing resilience and protecting and restoring nature on land and at sea.

Samoa is the first Pacific Island nation to host the event, and Prime Minister Fiamē Naomi Mata’afa said Friday it was “a great opportunity for everyone to experience the lived reality, especially around climate change.” “The greatest threat to the survival and security of our Pacific people.”

Two dozen small island nations are among CHOGM’s 56 member nations; These include the countries most at risk in the world from rising seas. His remarks come after the United Nations published a stunning new report saying the world is heading for significantly more warming than expected unless urgent climate action is taken.

The total population of the member countries of the 75-year-old Commonwealth organization is 2.7 billion people.