The continent continues to pay a heavy price for atrocities committed against its people, Algeria\u2019s foreign minister has said<\/p>\n
The African Union (AU) has called for historical crimes, including slavery, colonialism and racial segregation, to be formally recognized and criminalized as the continent intensifies its campaign for global reparations.
\nOn Sunday, leaders from across Africa met in Algeria to advance a resolution adopted by the AU earlier this year. The bloc has designated 2025 as the year of reparations.
\nIn an opening speech, Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf cited his country\u2019s experience under French rule to press for colonialism to be treated as an international crime and to strengthen Africa\u2019s demands for accountability.
\nHe said France had sought to \u201cmake Algeria a different country,\u201d replacing its people, identity, institutions, culture, religion and even its language.
\n\u201cThis colonial project was the longest-lasting in modern history: 132 years of Algerian resistance, and 132 years of French crimes of every kind,\u201d Attaf said.
\nHe added that Africa is \u201centitled to demand the official and explicit recognition of the crimes committed against its peoples during the colonial period,\u201d which countries on the continent continue to \u201cpay a heavy price for in terms of exclusion, marginalization and underdevelopment.\u201d
\nFor decades, African and Caribbean governments and activists have pushed for compensation and other forms of redress for slavery and colonial rule.<\/p>\n
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Attaf listed several colonial-era atrocities across Africa, noting that Belgium\u2019s rule in the Congo killed or maimed millions through forced labor and punitive amputations.
\nHe recalled Germany\u2019s extermination of the Herero and Nama peoples in Namibia, often described as the first genocide of the 20th century, and pointed to French military operations in Cameroon, where villages were burned and thousands were killed during anti-colonial uprisings.<\/p>\n
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He also referenced Portugal\u2019s campaigns in Angola and Mozambique, marked by mass killings, deportations and scorched-earth operations during the wars of 1961\u20131974.
\nAlgeria itself won independence from France in 1962 after a bloody war and years of repression, including the October 17, 1961 police assault in Paris that left scores of peaceful Algerian demonstrators dead.
\nSome former colonial powers have taken limited steps toward acknowledgment. Germany has recognized the Namibian genocide, Belgium has apologized for atrocities in the Congo, and France has admitted responsibility for certain massacres in Algeria.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The continent continues to pay a heavy price for atrocities committed against its people, Algeria\u2019s foreign minister has said The African Union (AU) has called for historical crimes, including slavery,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23555,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23554","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t