Brazilian President applauds Mahama’s leadership in reparative justice campaign
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has commended President John Dramani Mahama for advancing the global conversation on reparative justice and the historical consequences of the transatlantic trafficking of enslaved Africans.
Lula, speaking at the United Nations General Assembly, acknowledged efforts to correct what he described as historical distortions and called for greater attention to justice, equality and the protection of the sovereignty of nations.
He said the General Assembly had taken an important step by recognising the trafficking of enslaved Africans as the gravest crime against humanity.
“This General Assembly recently corrected a historical distortion in the world map. It recognized the trafficking of enslaved Africans as the gravest crime against humanity,” Lula said.
His remarks come as President Mahama has continued to push for reparative justice and greater international recognition of the enduring effects of the transatlantic slave trade on Africa and people of African descent.
For Mahama, the campaign has centred on ensuring that the historical injustice of slavery and its continuing economic and social consequences remain part of the global development conversation.
Lula said the recognition of the slave trade as a crime against humanity should provide a foundation for the international community to address broader challenges confronting humanity.
He urged world leaders to confront the choices facing the international system, including “multilateralism or unilateralism, democracy or extremism, sovereignty or subordination.”
“These choices require courage, political will, and clarity of objectives. This is what we expect from a statesman,” he said.
