Marking an abolition milestone.

• Author: Conaway, Janelle
• Position: OAS - End of slave trade

THIS YEAR OAS member countries commemorated a milestone in the long struggle to end slavery and paused to reflect on the legacy of a painful period in the history of the Americas.

It has been 200 years since the British Parliament abolished the slave trade that for some four centuries had taken millions of Africans from their homelands to toil on plantations in the Americas. The Slave Trade Act--passed on March 25, 1807--did not put an end to the practice of slavery, but it was a critical step in that direction.

During a special meeting to mark the bicentenary, the OAS Permanent Council observed a moment of silence in memory of those who suffered and died seeking freedom from slavery--"the most massive violation of human rights in the history of mankind," as OAS Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza put it.

"Historians have struggled to find the words to describe the sheer brutality with which mothers, fathers, children, and entire families were ripped from their homes and communities and transported in the most inhumane conditions to the New World--our Americas--where they were considered to be property and served as cheap disposable labor for the planter class," Insulza said. "We now look back at this period in disbelief at the manner in which, only 200 years ago, an entire global trading system actively participated in a trade that normalized and justified the enslavement of millions of people."

The Secretary General added that it is painful to acknowledge that this immoral system contributed to the commercial dynamism of Britain and other countries, "which in turn fueled many of the social and economic advances that we enjoy today."

"This paradox will continue to haunt us, and so it should," he said. "It should continue to serve as a poignant reminder that the means by which we achieve 'progress' are just as important as the ends."

During the meeting, the Permanent Council passed a resolution--"Commemoration of the Two-Hundredth Anniversary of the Abolition of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade"--urging member states to implement measures to help eradicate the lingering effects and consequences of the slave trade and slavery. It encourages them to continue negotiations on the "Draft Inter-American Convention against Racism and all forms of Discrimination and Intolerance."

The resolution, put forward originally by the countries of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and...