(London = Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Ji-yeon = British Prime Minister Andy Burnham left open the possibility of an apology for Britain's past transatlantic slave trade, but dismissed the possibility of compensation.
According to the Associated Press and Bloomberg News, Prime Minister Burnham will visit the Caribbean country of Antigua and Barbuda on the 2nd (local time) to attend the Commonwealth Summit (CHOGM), where heads of state from 56 Commonwealth countries gather every other year.
Prior to this, Prime Minister Burnham said in an article in the Guardian on the 1st, "We feel sorrow and regret at the suffering of millions of people," and "We are proposing a systematic dialogue with those affected by the transatlantic slave trade."
He even opened up the possibility of an apology, saying, "listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the United Kingdom will be an important part of this process, and I am open to that."
However, monetary compensation was clearly rejected.
Prime Minister Burnham said, "I don't think the British people of today can be held responsible for that historical mistake, no matter how heinous it was. That mistake occurred in a different era when different laws were applied, and the British people of today did not play a personal role."
Mr Burnham said debt servicing costs for the Commonwealth's most fiscally challenged countries were at their highest level in 25 years, and he said he would "work with global partners to bring forward new plans to help these countries repay their debt at better interest rates over longer periods of time."
Prime Minister Burnham also wrote that he would support these countries' energy transition in response to the climate crisis, strengthen women's education, reduce inequality and help eradicate poverty.
In a statement issued after Prime Minister Burnham's contribution, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), a consultative body of Caribbean countries, said, "An apology is an essential first step," and added, "However, an apology without recovery efforts is incomplete."
The Commonwealth countries in the Caribbean are countries that were colonies of Britain during the imperialist era but became independent in modern times. Many countries, including Antigua and Barbuda, still have the British monarch as their head of state.
Over 400 years from the 16th century, more than 12.5 million Africans were forced onto slave trade ships, and 2 million of them lost their lives on the way to the Americas.
England entered the slave trade in the mid-16th century, following Portugal and Spain, and at its peak was the largest slave trader.
Slaves captured in West Africa were traded for goods and shipped across the sea to sugar and tobacco plantations in the Caribbean. Products produced in this way were brought back to England. The Royal African Company, which operated under Charles II and James II, sent 80,000 Africans to America.
The movement to abolish slavery in England began in the late 18th century, the slave trade was banned in 1807, and slavery in the British Empire was made illegal in 1833.
Although the Netherlands apologized for the slave trade in 2022, no country has provided direct financial compensation to the descendants or countries of those harmed by the slave trade.
The British government has also neither apologized nor provided compensation for its role in the transatlantic slave trade, and has accordingly taken the stance that it will not raise the issue of compensation on the agenda at the Commonwealth Summit.
At the 2024 Commonwealth Summit, Caribbean and African member states requested to discuss the compensation issue, but then-British Prime Minister Keir Starmer drew the line that the compensation issue was not on the UK's agenda.
King Charles III, head of the Commonwealth, began his tour of Caribbean countries on the 27th of last month and arrived in Antigua and Barbuda on the 30th of last month to attend the summit that will run until the 4th.
Caribbean countries used the visit of Charles III as an opportunity to raise their voices calling for an official apology and compensation from Britain for its past involvement in the slave trade.
Charles III plans to express "undiminished honesty and genuine sadness" in his speech at the Commonwealth Summit, Buckingham Palace said.
However, since the British monarch cannot deviate from the obligation of political neutrality established by the Constitution, it is expected that he will not mention the British government's policy on apology and compensation.
Kemi Badennock, leader of the main opposition Conservative Party, urged Prime Minister Burnham not to issue an official apology.
“We should not be giving compensation to people for the slave trade,” Mr Badnock said. “Prime Minister Burnham should not even apologize because that could open the door to financial demands.”
