A reenactment of the transatlantic slave trade at Ghana’s Christiansborg Castle brought history into stark relief as African and Caribbean leaders backed a reparations plan aimed at addressing the enduring legacy of slavery.
At the former slave post, performers depicted the suffering of enslaved Africans, many of whom were held in the castle’s dungeons before being transported across the Atlantic. The site, also known as Osu Castle, was one of the key locations linked to the transatlantic trade.
The reenactment coincided with a high-level conference in Accra, where delegates discussed next steps following a United Nations resolution on the trafficking of enslaved Africans. Leaders backed 19-point reparations plan calling for formal apologies, debt relief and financial compensation, as well as broader recognition of the long-term impact of slavery.
“History does not ask us to inherit guilt, but it asks us to inherit responsibility,” Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama told delegates. Leaders from across Africa and the Caribbean attended the meeting, which focused on advancing a coordinated approach to addressing the legacy of slavery and its continuing effects. Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye said the initiative should move beyond symbolism.
“This resolution must not remain a mere symbol. It must open a new phase founded on truth, memory, justice, and shared responsibility,” he said. Back at Christiansborg Castle, visitors said the reenactment captured the emotional weight of that history, while leaders including Mahama and Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley later laid wreaths at the site in remembrance.