GHANA — Mia Mottley, the prime minister of Barbados, presented a revised Caribbean reparations manifesto at a conference in Ghana. The document details arguments for reparations based on harm caused by historical enslavement and updates a Caribbean Community 10-point plan for reparations from former colonial powers.

The updated plan addresses the disproportionate impact of slavery on girls and women and requests financial compensation for gender-based violence. The document cites estimates that at least 1.2 million enslaved women experienced sexual violence. Data indicates women comprised approximately 30% of an estimated 20 million Africans transported across the Atlantic.

Mottley stated that compensation for gender-based violence and assault on family is comparable to compensation awarded to other nationalities like the Japanese. The Caribbean Community is requesting monetary compensation, official apologies, education, and training from Britain and other European nations. The manifesto does not specify a total monetary value for the requested reparations.

The draft links climate justice initiatives with slavery reparations and advocates for programs supporting Indigenous Caribbean populations subjected to historical genocides. The Caribbean Reparations Commission revised the 52-page document to incorporate recent scientific and historical findings. This publication represents the second revision of the initial 2014 ten-point proposal.

The conference occurred after the U.N. General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring the trafficking of enslaved Africans a crime against humanity. In March, 123 nations voted in favor of the resolution, while the U.S., Israel, and Argentina voted against it. The U.K. and several other European nations abstained from voting on the U.N. slavery resolution.

The text asserts that international law does not impose a statute of limitations on crimes against humanity, citing a 1968 U.N. convention that eliminates statutory limitations for war crimes and crimes against humanity. Caribbean governments have advocated for reparative justice and acknowledgment of colonial legacies since 2013. Mottley said there should be no retreat on repair and characterized the language as being about healing for humanity.

No independent assessment of Mia Mottley’s claims was available.