[Britain was the biggest and baddest Empire
that ever stalked the Earth so if Tony Blair
wont apologise for slavery then I will in his
stead... Bill]
[Via Communist Internet... http://www.egroups.com/group/Communist-Internet ]
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----- Original Message -----
From: Bronwyn Penn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: mobalize-globally <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Monday, September 03, 2001 9:54 PM
Subject: [mobilize-globally] BRITAIN WILL NOT APOLOGISE FOR SLAVERY: PM'S OFFICE
RACISM-LD-BRITAIN
LONDON Sept 3 Sapa-AFP
BRITAIN WILL NOT APOLOGISE FOR SLAVERY: PM'S OFFICE
Britain on Monday stood by its refusal to apologise for its part in the
transatlantic slave trade at a highly charged UN racism summit, a spokesman
for Prime Minister Tony Blair said.
"This is an agreed EU position, which was agreed at the (EU foreign
ministers') general affairs council in July," the spokesman said.
"That position is that slavery has to be condemned in the present and
regretted in the past.
"It would not be sensible for governments to accept responsibility for the
actions of governments so long ago. What is important is what we do in the
present," he said.
Spain, Portugal and The Netherlands are believed to be in sympathy with
British fears that an apology would add legal momentum to demands that those
countries which traded in slaves pay reparations.
European officials have been working on the basis of draft wording on
slavery agreed by foreign ministers in July.
"The European Union profoundly deplores the human suffering, individual and
collective, caused by slavery and the slave trade.
"They are among the most dishonourable and abhorrent chapters in the
history of humanity. The EU condemns these practices in the past and the
present, and regrets the suffering they have caused," the draft said.
African countries felt the proposed statement did not go nearly far enough
and called for a full apology and acceptance that slavery was a crime
against humanity.
Senior African-American campaigner, the Reverend Jesse Jackson, said the
failure to apologise indicated that these countries were proud of their
colonial past.
"If you don't feel apologetic for slavery, if you don't feel apologetic for
colonialism, if you feel proud of it, then say that," he told the BBC.
"But if one has a sincere desire to overcome the ravages of the past it
doesn't take much to apologise and move towards some plan for restoration."
Belgium, which currently holds the EU presidency, is pushing hard for a move
closer to African demands for an apology.
Divisions on the slavery issue come as the Israeli delegation at the UN
World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa, deliberates over
whether to pull out of the talks, after a pro-Palestinian delegation accused
Israel of "genocide and ethnic cleansing."
On Sunday, a forum of non-governmental organisations taking place on the
sidelines of the UN meeting adopted resolutions condemning Israel for
genocide, and as an apartheid state.
Delegates have four days to work out their differences before the conference
closes on Friday.
Sapa-AFP
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