The Foundation for Peace Professionals (PeacePro) has called on the Pope, European governments, Arab states, and institutions that historically benefited from slavery to move beyond acknowledgments and apologies and embrace meaningful accountability.
PeacePro noted that while several governments, churches, and institutions have publicly acknowledged the historic crime of slavery, few have proposed concrete accountability measures proportionate to the benefits they derived from centuries of human exploitation.
According to PeacePro’s Executive Director, Abdulrazaq Hamzat, the conversation should no longer focus solely on whether slavery was wrong, a question history has already answered, but on what responsibilities are owed by those who inherited the benefits of that system.
“Many institutions have acknowledged slavery as a crime against humanity. That is welcome. But acknowledgment without accountability risks becoming a symbolic exercise rather than a moral reckoning,” the organization stated.
Hamzat argued that institutions involved in or enriched by slavery must not only acknowledge the crime itself but also openly acknowledge the historic advantages, wealth accumulation, institutional growth, and geopolitical influence that flowed from that crime and whose effects remain visible today.
“The issue is not merely that slavery occurred. The issue is that some institutions and societies derived enormous benefits from it, while the victims and their descendants continue to bear many of its consequences. A truthful accounting requires recognition of both the crime and its benefits.”
PeacePro stressed that accountability should not be viewed narrowly as financial reparations demanded by victims. Rather, beneficiaries of historic injustice should be encouraged to develop and propose their own voluntary accountability measures.
“Accountability is most meaningful when it comes from the conscience of the beneficiary rather than the demands of the victim. The question should not be, ‘What do the victims want?’ The question should be, ‘What responsibility do we owe in light of the benefits we inherited?'”
Hamzat urged governments, churches, corporations, universities, financial institutions, and other organizations linked to the slave trade to undertake independent historical audits of their involvement and publicly disclose the benefits accrued from slavery.
PeacePro further called for each institution to develop its own accountability framework, which could include educational initiatives, historical preservation projects, scholarship programs, development partnerships, investments in affected communities, or other measures deemed appropriate by the institution itself.
“There can be no genuine reconciliation without moral responsibility. The beneficiaries of historic crimes should not wait to be compelled by others. They should lead by proposing their own accountability measures as an expression of justice, integrity, and historical truth.”
PeacePro maintained that the global conversation on slavery must evolve from remembrance to responsibility, arguing that acknowledgment answers what happened, but accountability addresses what should be done about it.
“The world has spent generations acknowledging slavery. The next generation must focus on accountability.”