A/64/L.50 GA
Special commemorative meeting of the General Assembly on the occasion of the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade
64
Session
| Draft symbol | A/64/L.50 |
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Vote Consensus — A/64/PV.80
Speeches following this vote (20)
Mr. Akasaka
I am very honoured to deliver the following message on behalf of the Secretary-General.
“Slavery is abhorrent. It is explicitly prohibited by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the United Nations has reaffirmed this principle many times, including in the Durban Declaration, adopted at the 2001 World Conference against Racism. But slavery and slavery-like practices continue in many pa…
The Acting President
I thank the Under- Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information for reading out the message from the Secretary-General.
Before proceeding further, I should like to consult Member States about inviting our keynote speaker, Professor Tony Bogues of Brown University, to make a statement on this occasion. If there is no objection, may I take it that it is the wish of the General Assem…
The Acting President
I now give the floor to the representative of Equatorial Guinea, who will speak on behalf of the Group of African States.
Mr. Ndong Mba
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the African Group on this important occasion of commemorating the anniversary of the abolition of transatlantic slavery.
I wish to convey our sincere appreciation to our brothers and sisters in the Caribbean Community for sustaining the momentum generated by their initiative in 2007, for which the African Group maintains its full and unconditional support.…
The Acting President
I now give the floor to the representative of Afghanistan, who will speak on behalf of the Group of Asian States.
Mr. Ayoob
It is my honour to speak on behalf of the Asian Group as we gather here to observe the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
The transatlantic slave trade persisted for four centuries. That is longer than most of our nations have existed. It forever changed the landscape of the world, not only for those who were ripped from their homes and …
The Acting President
I now give the floor to the representative of Ukraine, who will speak on behalf of the Group of Eastern European States.
Mr. Sergeyev
It is a particular honour for my delegation to take the floor on behalf of the Group of Eastern European States at this special
commemorative meeting of the General Assembly on the occasion of the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
Since the adoption of General Assembly resolution 62/122, designating 25 March as the International Day of…
The Acting President
Before giving the floor to the representative of the next regional group, I now invite Ms. Elsie Laurence-Chounoune to read out an extract from the autobiography of Olaudah Equiano, known as Gustavus Vassa, the African.
Ms. Laurence-Chounoune: My name is Elsie Laurence-Chounoune and I am a staff member from Haiti, and I am also President of the Haitian Association at the United Nations.
It is m…
The Acting President
I now give the floor to the representative of Panama, who will speak on behalf of the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States.
Mr. Thalassinós
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights affirms that “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights”. Such a fundamental humanitarian principle takes on special meaning on a day such as today, when we observe the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
Today we pause to pay tribute to the millions of Africans who were viole…
The Acting President
I now give the floor to the representative of Germany, who will speak on behalf of the Group of Western European and other States.
Mr. Wittig
It is a particular honour for my delegation to address the General Assembly on behalf of the Group of Western European and other States as we gather today to commemorate the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade.
Slavery is a disgrace for humankind. It is one of the most fundamental attacks imaginable against human rights and human dignity. Article 4 of the Universal Declaration o…
The Acting President
I now give the floor to the representative of the United States, the host country.
Mr. Barton
It is a great honour for me today to recall the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade: the more than 10 million men, women and children who, chained in darkness, hungry and sick, were taken across the Atlantic Ocean and into bondage, often to my own country’s shores. On the anniversary of the day in 1807 when the British Empire outlawed the slave trade, we recommit ourselves to ach…
The Acting President
I shall now invite Ms. Lawri Lala Moore, President of the United Nations Jazz Society, to perform a musical recital.
Ms. Moore: I am African American; the guitarist who is accompanying me is from Zambia. We are going to do a song entitled “Strange Fruit”.
The Acting President
I now give the floor to the representative of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, who will speak on behalf of the Caribbean Community and also introduce our featured speaker.
Mr. Gonsalves
I have the distinct honour of delivering this statement on behalf of the 14 member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).
One of the greatest artists of our Caribbean civilization, the late Robert Nesta Marley, once sang in his song “Slave Driver”:
“Every time I hear the crack of a whip My blood runs cold. I remember on the slave ship How they brutalized my very soul.”
It is that brutali…
The Acting President
In accordance with the decision taken earlier, I now give the floor to Professor Tony Bogues of Brown University.
Mr. Bogues: I would like to begin my remarks this afternoon with words of tribute to Professor Rex Nettleford, who delivered the inaugural keynote lecture at the 2007 commemoration at the General Assembly.
Professor Nettleford was not only Vice- Chancellor of the University of the W…
The Acting President
I now invite Ms. Kaissa Doumbe Moulongo and Mr. Anthony Cedras to present a musical performance.
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