Kemi Badenoch: British Taxpayers Must Not Pay For Slavery Committed Generations Ago.
Questions African involvement in slave trade and warns Commonwealth leaders against demanding compensation.
British Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has rejected demands for slavery reparations and another formal apology from Britain, questioning whether Caribbean countries seeking compensation for the transatlantic slave trade would also demand apologies from the descendants of African kingdoms, rulers and merchants who participated in it.
Badenoch argued that contemporary British taxpayers should not be held financially responsible for historical injustices committed generations before their birth, while criticising political leaders in Commonwealth countries who continue to press Britain for compensation.
She maintained that discussions about slavery should acknowledge the involvement of different societies in the trade rather than focusing exclusively on Britain’s historical responsibility. “Slavery was an evil in which people from every continent and region participated. We should be honest about the whole history, not select the parts that are politically convenient today, especially given Britain’s leading role in ending the transatlantic slave trade,” Badenoch said. The Conservative leader questioned whether Caribbean countries demanding a formal apology from Britain were prepared to extend similar demands to the descendants of African leaders and merchants involved in the enslavement and sale of people.
MSEApp News is publishing an original rewrite of this tip for readers, based on reporting associated with Arise News.