Today, 19 African countries remain part of the Commonwealth of Nations, which has a total of 56 member states across the world. Nearly all of them were once colonized by the British Empire in some shape or form.
Recently, there have been calls from some of Britain’s former colonies for a reckoning over its role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
Leaders from member states have asked for a “meaningful, respectful and truthful” discussion of reparatory justice at the recent 27th Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
Britain has so far rejected the idea of paying monetary compensation as reparations. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, a former human rights lawyer, argued that he would rather “look forward” than have “endless discussions about reparations.” involving the past.
But how do Africans weigh in on the issue?
‘Reparation is not about money’
From the 15th to the 19th century, at least 12.5 million Africans are estimated to have been taken from their homes, kidnapped, and forced to board American and European ships. They were taken across the Atlantic against their will and sold into slavery across the Americas.
Some tallies state that the number could be as high as 28 million victims of slavery.
According to the UK parliament’s website, Britain’s involvement in the slave trade began in 1562: by the 1730s, the UK had become the biggest slave trading nation in the world.
During his trip to Nigeria, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said that addressing dark chapter of the country’s history “is not about the transfer of cash, particularly at a time of a cost-of-living crisis around much of the globe.”
He urged Commonwealth leaders to find the “right language” and an understanding of history “to guide us towards making the right choices in future, where inequality exists.”
The UK government meanwhile has never formally apologized for its role in slavery but has only acknowledged its involvement with “great regret” — that’s at least how former Prime Minister Tony Blair expressed his sentiments on the matter back in 2007 already.
Britain — and the Commonwealth — have done little in the 17 years since then to talk about what this “regret” might need to translate into.
‘Nothing to gain from Commonwealth’
According to Khalifa Dikwa, Professor of Social Linguistics and International Relations at the University of Maiduguri in northern Nigeria, there’s great reluctance among African nations to remain in the Commonwealth against the backdrop of no real redress taking place as part of the debate on historic slavery.
Dikwa says, however, that African leaders have no choice but to stay in the Commonwealth: “There was coercion behind the scenes, diplomatically or otherwise. There’s no gain from being a member of the Commonwealth because the whole trade was lopsided,” he told DW.
According to Dikwa, the only country that benefits from the Commonwealth is Britain.
“There is nothing common about the Commonwealth,” Dikwa said, adding that to ensure that the process of reparations can even begin, African countries in the Commonwealth must speak with one voice.
Britain’s new approach
Chris Vandome, an expert on international relations at Chatham House, UK, told DW, however, that the Commonwealth does still play an important role behind the scenes, providing great support when it comes to economic issues as well as ideas around democracy and commitment to democratic institutions.
“This is an organization that has principles around democracy, it has principles around elections, the Harare principles, and it does have a desire for the subscription to the rule of law and democratic institutions,” Vandome said.
UK Foreign Secretary Lammy meanwhile believes that Britain can engage differently and that it should pursue a new approach in its relations with African nations which will deliver on “respectful partnerships that listen rather than tell, deliver long-term growth rather than short-term solutions, and build a freer, safer, more prosperous continent.”
However, many African Commonwealth leaders appear to doubt whether this will result indeed in more common wealth.
Edited by: Sertan Sanderson
