The Council of State has congratulated President John Dramani Mahama on the distinguished success at the United Nations General Assembly in advancing Africa’s position on the global discourse on slavery and its enduring consequences.
“This notable achievement reflects His Excellency’s visionary leadership, diplomatic acumen and unwavering commitment to justice, human dignity and historical accountability,” the Council of State said in a statement issued in Accra yesterday and signed by its Chairman, Edward Doe Adjaho, after sending a message to the President.
Context
This statement comes as a result of Ghana’s intervention at the recent United Nations General Assembly, when the President led a Ghana delegation to push an African Union agenda to adopt a resolution for the global recognition of the transatlantic slave-trade as the greatest crime against humanity.
He tabled the motion at the UN Headquarters in New York on the commemoration of the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade last Tuesday.
The council said the President’s move had advanced Ghana’s position on “the global discourse on slavery and its enduring consequences”.
The highest constitutional national advisory chamber of the country’s governance structure said the feat further reinforced the country’s longstanding reputation as a beacon of Pan-Africanism and a principled voice in the comity of nations.
The council also commended President Mahama for elevating the country’s standing on the international stage and for championing a cause of profound global significance.
“We are confident that this milestone will continue to inspire national pride and strengthen Ghana’s role in promoting equity and justice worldwide,” the Council of State said.
The council also pledged its continued support as the President leads the nation to greater heights.
Background
The United Nations (UN) last Tuesday adopted Ghana’s resolution on transatlantic slave trade, slavery, colonisation and apartheid at the UN General Assembly in New York, the United States of America (USA).
The resolution titled, “Declaration of the Trafficking of Enslaved Africans and Racialised Chattel Enslavement of Africans as the Gravest Crime Against Humanity”, was overwhelmingly adopted by the UN member states.
The resolution saw 123 countries vote in favour; 52 countries abstained; and three countries, namely the USA, Israel and Argentina, voted against.
The adoption of the resolution meant the transatlantic slave trade and slavery can now be called the gravest crime against humanity and set the tone for legitimate pressure for reparative justice and the return of stolen artefacts from Africa during the period of the slave trade, colonisation and apartheid.
Ghana, under the leadership of President Mahama, moved the motion with the backing of the African Union (AU), ECOWAS and the Caribbean countries among others.
“Let it be recorded that when history beckoned, we did what was right for the memory of the millions who suffered the indignity of slavery. Let our vote on this resolution restore their dignity and humanity,” he said.
Rationale
The resolution also called for a crucial adjustment of world systems to afford African countries and Africans equal opportunities to exercise their rights.
President Mahama urged UN member states not to sit on the fence of neutrality on the adoption of the resolution, backing his statement with a quote from a former President of the USA, Theodore Roosevelt, that, “With a great moral issue involved, neutrality does not serve righteousness; for to be neutral between right and wrong is to serve wrong.”
He also stressed the need to pursue justice, reminding delegates at the UN General Assembly of the civil rights leader, Dr Martin Luther King’s, assertion that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends towards justice.”
Source:
www.graphic.com.gh