Africa has gained a new political lever in the global battle over slavery’s legacy after the UN General Assembly adopted resolution A/80/L.48, a landmark declaration recognising the trafficking and racialised chattel enslavement of Africans as the gravest crime against humanity.
The Assembly adopted the text “Declaration of the Trafficking of Enslaved Africans and Racialized Chattel Enslavement of Africans as the Gravest Crime against Humanity” on Wednesday, with a recorded vote of 123 in favour to three against (Argentina, Israel and United States) and 52 abstentions.
By adopting the resolution, the Assembly affirmed the importance of addressing historical wrongs affecting Africans and people of African descent and emphasises that claims for reparations represent a concrete step towards remedying historical wrongs.
Ghana’s Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, presenting the motion on behalf of the African Group, said the text is not about reopening history or targeting specific states but about establishing a principled framework for reconciliation grounded in truth.
He said the declaration seeks formal recognition of slavery’s “world‑breaking impact” and aims to strengthen global efforts toward reparatory justice and the fight against systemic racism.
Transatlantic slave trade, which lasted more than three centuries, forcibly removed millions of Africans who were shipped across the Atlantic in brutal conditions, subjected to violence, exploitation and the systematic stripping of identity.
Its economic and demographic impacts hollowed out African societies while enriching colonial powers, and its legacy continues to shape global inequalities, racial hierarchies and development disparities.
The resolution shifts the continent’s long‑running campaign from symbolic remembrance toward enforceable commitments on truth, justice and reparatory action.
The African Union Commission (AUC) welcomed the vote, saying it reflects Africa’s decades‑long demand for full recognition of the slave trade’s enduring consequences.
The AUC Chairperson described the decision as “an important step toward truth, justice and healing,” adding that it reinforces the need for comprehensive acknowledgment of slavery’s historical and contemporary impacts, including reparative justice.
The vote, however, exposed sharp divisions.
The United States, Israel and Argentina opposed the resolution, arguing that it creates legal ambiguities, attempts to retroactively apply international law and risks ranking crimes against humanity.
The European Union abstained, saying it supports remembrance and the fight against racism but objected to what it called legal inaccuracies and selective historical references.
UN Secretary‑General António Guterres said the world must reject the false narrative of racial hierarchy that underpinned slavery and take bold action to eradicate systemic racism and advance reparatory justice.
He warned that modern forms of exploitation – including forced labour and trafficking – persist.
JN/APA