Britain must put slavery reparations debate to bed and focus on the Commonwealth’s future, writes Rakib Ehsan

BREAKING Urgent manhunt underway as man shot near Royal Artillery Barracks in London 1792758339.092 Britain must put slavery reparations debate to bed and focus on the Commonwealth’s future Britain was a major colonial power, but its pioneering work in suppressing the slave trade cannot be understated, writes political commentator Rakib Ehsan Sign up to the Opinion Newsletter Email address Sign up I agree to receive updates and information about my account, the GB News Community, and related products and services from GB News. By signing up you agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy and Community Rules. Thank you for signing up! See the latest from GB News here . Choose GB News on Google - add us as a preferred source Choose GB News Support GB News Champion free speech and independent journalism while unlocking exclusive benefits. Support us With the next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in the Caribbean country of Antigua & Barbuda just around the corner, the debate on reparations has once again reared its ugly head. Yesterday, Commonwealth secretary-general Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey – a Ghanaian politician, diplomat, and lawyer – said that a formal apology for slavery from King Charles III “wouldn’t hurt” and that the “time has come” for a serious conversation regarding reparations. In addition to this, Sir Hilary Beckles – the Barbadian historian who is currently the chairman of the CARICOM Reparations Commission – called for King Charles III to ensure that the Commonwealth becomes a “moral institution committed to human justice”. The reparations debate is a complex one. It is true that Britain was a major colonial power and participated in the transatlantic slave trade. TRENDING Stories Videos Your Say What is also true is that it played a pioneering humanitarian role in suppressing the slave trade – especially the Royal Navy’s West Africa Squadron, which waged a decades-long campaign to combat slavery (at considerable human and financial cost). Many British sailors made the ultimate sacrifice to suppress the slave trade, taking the fight to slave ships which were more sophisticated and dynamic than their own vessels. Should the descendants of such fallen sailors then be expected to contribute towards financial reparatory justice over slavery? That is not human justice, but a complete whitewashing of the integral part Britain played in the eventual abolition of the transatlantic slave trade. Indeed, the Royal Navy continues to act in the spirit of that magnificent anti-slavery campaign - through its current-day modern maritime security, anti-smuggling, and counter-human-trafficking patrols across international waters. What tends to be overlooked by those who are supportive of slavery-related reparations is the influential role of powerful and wealthy African kingdoms in fuelling the transatlantic slave trade – selling captives to European merchants and making a handsome profit of it. Botchwey, as Commonwealth secretary-general, has declared that the time has come to have a major conversation on reparations. Protesters demonstrating for reparations earlier this year | GETTY Does she mean assessing the role of the Asante elite (in modern-day Ghana) in slave-trading activities? In fact, it played a major role as an intermediary and supplier in the transatlantic slave trade during the 18th and 19th centuries. I suspect Botchwey would not be so enthusiastic about Ghana paying reparations for the participation of the Asante Empire in large-scale human exportation for purposes of slavery. Slavery and the selling of captives also became a feature of Yoruba society in modern-day Nigeria. This expanded significantly through the transatlantic slave-trading activities of the Oyo Empire (a powerful Yoruba state which was part of present-day western Nigeria and Benin). In current-day southern Benin, the Kings of Dahomey established themselves as some of the most active participants in the selling of slaves – with King Ghezo declaring that the slave trade was “the ruling principle of my people” and “the source of the glory of their wealth”. Yet, despite the history, we see no calls for a specific West African scheme for slavery-related atonement in the shape of financial reparatory justice. Neither would I like to see one, considering the majority of current-day Benin’s population languishes in multidimensional poverty. LATEST DEVELOPMENTS Labour's attempts to coerce young people to serve their country will fall on deaf ears Andy Burnham and John Healey have left us in the dark but can't bring themselves to do one thing Jason O'Connell: It's time to ban the burka and stop balaclava thugs running rampant in our towns What King Charles III and PM Andy Burnham should do is articulate a positive, optimistic, and forward-thinking vision for the Commonwealth, writes Rakib Ehsan | REUTERS What King Charles III and PM Andy Burnham should do is articulate a positive, optimistic, and forward-thinking vision for the Commonwealth – one where the UK co-operates with member-states, in areas from healthcare to security, in the spirit of being free and equal nations. Debates on reparatory justice threaten to derail the Commonwealth and push it further to the margins of the international system. Instead, I want to see the Commonwealth be a future-oriented international association which deepens co-operation when it comes to trade and investment – building on existing advantages based on a shared language, common legal and administrative frameworks, and historical and diasporic networks. The Commonwealth, which incorporates some of the fastest-growing and youthful economies on Earth, is brimming with potential which needs to be harnessed in a strategic and effective manner. It is time for the UK to be confident and bold – it should take pride in its rich history of humanitarian moral sacrifice and help to provide the Commonwealth with a much-needed sense of drive and purpose. It must put the debate on slavery-related reparations to bed, for the sake of the Commonwealth’s relevancy in an increasingly volatile and unpredictable world. 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