Africa Demands Colonial Reparations and End of Resource Exploitation at the 38th AU Summit
Heads of State and delegates attend the 38th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 15 February 2025. Angola’s President Joao Lourenco has assumed the role of Chairperson of the African Union. Photo: EFE/EPA/MINASSE WONDIMU HAILU
February 15, 2025 Hour: 1:02 pm
During the 38th Summit of the African Union, held in Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia, the member countries articulated a class action lawsuit aimed at dismantling the structures of inequality bequeathed by European colonialism on the continent.
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This year’s Summit theme was the “Justice for Africans and People of African Descent through Reparations,” the Union stated in X that path to justice and repair is long, but its Member States, the African citizens and the African Diaspora are determined to walk it together.
“Reparations are not just about the past-they are about the future. A future where history is acknowledged, justice is served, and Africans and people of African descent can thrive with dignity and equality in fulfillment of the Africa We Want,” the AU said.
For his part, the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed emphasized during the opening session that “It is not about charity or international handouts. It is a call for historical justice, to restore the dignity taken from millions of people.”
In this regard the PM said that reparations must translate into “concrete measures” to eradicate the root causes of poverty, systemic discrimination, and economic dependency that persist decades after independence.
The heads of state and government of the African Union hold their annual summit this weekend to address the continent’s major challenges, such as the conflicts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan, the global cut in humanitarian aid decreed by the United States, and the mpox epidemic that is spreading through several West African countries.
The 38th Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly, the highest decision-making body of the Pan-African organization made up of the leaders of all 55 member states, will open on Saturday and conclude on Sunday at the institution’s headquarters in Addis Ababa.
The opening ceremony also saw the participation of international leaders such as the UN Secretary General, António Guterres, who arrived on Thursday in the Ethiopian capital.
Autor: ACJ
Fuente: teleSURtv.net // EFE // Africa News