John Mahama
President John Dramani Mahama has announced that Ghana will table a motion at the United Nations to recognise the transatlantic slave trade as the greatest crime against humanity.
In his address to the 80th UN General Assembly on September 25, 2025, he said the time had come for the world to confront the full scale of the atrocity and its enduring legacy. “The slave trade must be recognised as the greatest crime against humanity. As African Champion on reparations, Ghana intends to introduce a motion in this August body to that effect,” he declared.
The President explained that the suffering of Africans during the slave trade could not continue to be minimised or treated as a historical footnote. He argued that justice demanded recognition, accountability, and reparations for descendants of the enslaved.
He noted that slavery had left a long-lasting impact on global inequalities, contributing to economic disparities and racial injustice still visible today.
According to him, a genuine acknowledgement of this history was critical for healing and reconciliation. “Justice demands recognition, accountability, and reparative measures. Anything less is an affront to the memory of those who suffered and perished,” he said.
He highlighted Ghana’s leadership role in the global reparations movement and pledged to work with other African nations to advance the cause.
The President further urged world leaders to embrace the motion not as a symbolic act, but as a moral imperative and a step toward building a more just world.
He reminded the Assembly that Ghana’s history, as a major centre of the slave trade, gave it both the responsibility and the legitimacy to spearhead the campaign.
President John Dramani Mahama has announced that Ghana will table a motion at the United Nations to recognise the transatlantic slave trade as the greatest crime against humanity.
In his address to the 80th UN General Assembly on September 25, 2025, he said the time had come for the world to confront the full scale of the atrocity and its enduring legacy. “The slave trade must be recognised as the greatest crime against humanity. As African Champion on reparations, Ghana intends to introduce a motion in this August body to that effect,” he declared.
The President explained that the suffering of Africans during the slave trade could not continue to be minimised or treated as a historical footnote. He argued that justice demanded recognition, accountability, and reparations for descendants of the enslaved.
He noted that slavery had left a long-lasting impact on global inequalities, contributing to economic disparities and racial injustice still visible today.
According to him, a genuine acknowledgement of this history was critical for healing and reconciliation. “Justice demands recognition, accountability, and reparative measures. Anything less is an affront to the memory of those who suffered and perished,” he said.
He highlighted Ghana’s leadership role in the global reparations movement and pledged to work with other African nations to advance the cause.
The President further urged world leaders to embrace the motion not as a symbolic act, but as a moral imperative and a step toward building a more just world.
He reminded the Assembly that Ghana’s history, as a major centre of the slave trade, gave it both the responsibility and the legitimacy to spearhead the campaign.