Caribbean ambassador proposes establishment of assembly to seek reparations for transatlantic slavery

David Comissiong, a high-level Caribbean ambassador, has voiced the need to establish an international special tribunal for seeking reparations related to transatlantic slavery. There is growing support among African and Caribbean nations for creating such a tribunal to address atrocities dating back to transatlantic slavery. Representatives from other nations, including Guyana and Venezuela, agreed with Comissiong’s call for the tribunal. A high-level Caribbean ambassador said on Wednesday it was crucial to establish a new international special tribunal to seek reparations for transatlantic slavery and its legacies in today’s society. Reuters reported earlier this month that support was building among African and Caribbean nations for the creation of such a tribunal on atrocities dating to transatlantic slavery. For over four centuries at least 12.5 million Africans were kidnapped, forcibly transported thousands of miles by mainly European ships and merchants and sold into slavery. CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY ARGUES CASH PAYMENTS TO DESCENDANTS OF SLAVES ‘RECOGNIZE THE HARM DONE’ FROM SLAVERY David Comissiong, the Barbados ambassador to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and a well-know reparations advocate, said a tribunal was needed as there was no international court properly equipped to deal with reparations claims of such magnitude and complexity. A U.N. flag waves...