Traditional African rulers should apologise for the role they played in the slave trade, a Nigerian rights group has said in a letter to chiefs. (Once again, the so-called white “extremists” were right. –Ed)
“We cannot continue to blame the whitemen, as Africans particularly the traditional rulers, are notblameless,” said the Civil Rights Congress.
The letter said some collaborated or actively sold off their subjects.
The group said it was time for African leaders to copy the US and the UK who have already said they were sorry.
Iturged Nigeria’s traditional rulers to apologise on behalf of theirforefathers and “put a final seal to the history of slave trade”, AFPnews agency reports.
Civil Rights Congress president Shehu Sani says they are calling forthis apology because traditional rulers are seeking inclusion in theforthcoming constitutional amendment in Nigeria.
“We felt thatfor them to have the moral standing to be part of our constitutionalarrangement there are some historical issues for them to address,” hetold the BBC World Service.
“One part of which is the involvement of their institutions in the slave trade.”
Hesaid that on behalf of the buyers of slaves, the ancestors of thesetraditional rulers “raided communities and kidnapped people, shippingthem away across the Sahara or across the Atlantic”.