PAWA, WAFORD commend Cuba for hosting Decade of African Diaspora conference

* Visit to Literacy Museum, Quintin Bandera, Museum of the Rebel Slave

* CARICOM’s Carla Barnet’s heartwarming message to conferees

By Editor

PAN-African Writers Association (PAWA) and its diasporia arm, Writers of African Origin in the Diaspora (WAFORD) felicitated with the nation of Cuba, the conference organizers and participants of the International Decade for People of African Descent as proclaimed by the UN General Assembly and being hosted in Cuba from December 9-13, 2024. This is commendation is contained in a joint statement signed by PAWA’s Secretary Dr. Wale Okediran and WAFORD’s Coordinator Prof. Bill F. Ndi.

In a message signed by poet, writer and Coordinator of WAFORD, Prof. Bill F. Ndi the two bodies observed that the conference’s theme ‘Equality, Equity, and Social Justice’ resonates profoundly with the shared aspirations of our global Afro Descendant Community and the ongoing journey towards a more just and inclusive world.

The statement further observed that the international conference exemplifies Cuba and the Cuban people’s enduring commitment to confronting racism and championing the rights and dignity of people of African descent.

It is noteworthy that Cuba currently chairs United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization (C-24) and the conference’s focus on national programmes against racism and racial discrimination, along with the cultural initiatives celebrating African heritage underscores the power of unity, dialogue, and cultural preservation as vital tools for societal transformation.

As Pan African writers, we believe in and recognize the indispensable role of stories in shaping identities and fostering resilience and resistance. The planned visits to community spaces and cultural centres such as the Literacy Museum, Quintin Bandera and the Museum of the Rebel Slave highlight how Afro history and heritage are vital narratives in our collective fight against inequality, inequity and injustice.

LAST August 31 when the International for People of African Descent was celebrated globally, the United Nations’ Secretary-General Antonio Guterres sent a message of solidarity for the celebration, highlighting strides made so far and what more needs to be done for a more inclusive world:

On the International Day for People of African Descent, we honour the immense and diverse contributions of people of African descent to the vast spectrum of human achievements, and their tireless efforts to create a better world.

The leadership, courage, and activism of people of African descent have helped overcome profound injustices, saved lives, improved societies, and brought crucial issues to the world’s attention. Yet the intolerable legacies of enslavement and colonialism endure. Systemic racism is rife and continues to mutate into new forms – including in new technologies, where algorithms can amplify discrimination.

We must build on the work of people of African descent with global action to eradicate the scourge of racism and racial discrimination.

At the United Nations, this is a priority, and we have established a new Anti-Racism Office. This will drive implementation of our strategic plan to address racism in the workplace. We also need governments to take the lead – by advancing and implementing policies and laws to tackle systemic racism and ensure inclusion. We need the private sector to step up – including rooting out bias in technology and other dimensions of working life. And we need reparatory justice to address the crimes of enslavement. 

Building on the success of the last decade, I hope States will proclaim a second International Decade for People of African Descent, to help to accelerate global efforts for true change. 

Together, let’s do our part to vanquish racism and discrimination, and build a world of equality, opportunity, and justice for all.

CARICOM Secretary-Generation, Dr. Carla Barnet

IN a related development, Caribbean Community (CARICOM), based in Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) had a message for the conferees at International Decade for People of African Descent, read on its behalf by its Secretary-General, Dr. Carla Barnet:

Excellencies, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen, standing on protocol that has been established:

I am pleased for this opportunity to address this august gathering on behalf of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) as we pause to reflect on the International Decade for People of African Descent, a global initiative declared by the United Nations (UN) and observed from 2015 to 2024. I congratulate the Government of Cuba for organising this International Conference on a topic of such significance to the Caribbean.

I am particularly pleased that this is happening as we are also celebrating the fifty-second anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between CARICOM and Cuba. When newly independent Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, made the sovereign decision to establish diplomatic relations with Cuba in 1972, at a time of significant geopolitical tensions, it was signifying a commitment to a forging a regional partnership that has endured and strengthened over more than five decades.

This Decade, which aims to promote the rights of African descendants worldwide, has brought into sharp focus the urgent need for the global community to collectively confront historical injustices, dismantle the structures of racism, and build societies based on the principles of equality, equity, and social justice. As we stand here at the brink of this Decade’s conclusion, we must reflect on the progress made and, perhaps more importantly, the work that remains. The struggle for the rights of people of African descent is not a fleeting campaign; rather, it is an ongoing commitment to ensuring that future generations inherit a world free from the shackles of oppression and inequality.

When we speak of equality, we mean the fundamental right of all people to live with dignity and freedom from discrimination, regardless of race, color, or ethnicity. It is often said that “equality is the birthright of every human being,” but for people of African descent, this right has historically been denied or compromised. We need only look at the legacy of slavery, colonialism, and racial segregation, to understand the deep-seated barriers that have hindered the advancement of African-descended peoples. Whether in the Americas, Africa, or Europe, people of African descent continue to face disparities in access to education, healthcare, employment, and political representation.

Equality requires that these disparities be addressed, not merely by words, but through deliberate, sustained efforts to dismantle the structures that perpetuate inequality. The International Decade has brought the struggles of people of African descent into the global spotlight, calling for action to secure their rightful place in history and society.

Closely linked to equality is the principle of equity. This does not mean that we treat everyone in the same way; it means that we recognise that people start from different places and may require different resources and support to be able to achieve their full potential. In the case of people of African descent, this means acknowledging the historical and ongoing effects of racism and discrimination. Afro-descendant communities in the Americas continue to face significant barriers to economic advancement and political participation, and disproportionately high levels of poverty, unemployment and incarceration.

Equity, in the Caribbean context, means giving those who have been historically marginalised the tools, resources, and opportunities to overcome the barriers that have held them back. It means ensuring that people of African descent, and especially youth, have access to quality education, healthcare, and social mobility. It also means recognising the importance of African-Caribbean cultural heritage, and ensuring that this rich history is celebrated and recognised in national identities.

When we have equality and equity, we will also realise social justice, where entrenched systems of privilege and oppression have been dismantled. It was in an effort to attain this transformative social, economic and political agenda that the Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community took the historic decision, in 2013, to pursue Europe for reparations on behalf of the people of the Caribbean. This action seeks redress for the crimes against humanity of native genocide of the indigenous people of the Caribbean, the trans-Atlantic trade in enslaved Africans and chattel enslavement perpetrated for over 400 years in the Region.

The CARICOM Reparations Commission’s strident advocacy and intellectual leadership for over a decade, under the Chairmanship of Caribbean historian and reparations advocate, Professor Hilary Beckles, has reinvigorated a global movement for reparatory justice which is compelling, just and essential for sustainable, inclusive development in the global south. The reparations agenda has been accorded priority attention by the Heads of Government of CARICOM. It complements the bold agenda being advanced under the Bridgetown Initiative for constructive reform of the international financial system to address structural inequalities that hinder the advancement of our countries and our people. It also adds to ongoing and vital conversations on climate justice.

The debt has not yet been paid for systemic exploitation, extraction of wealth, pain and suffering, apartheid, Jim Crow and psychological harm leading to enduring, persistent poverty among African descended people. To address this history of exploitation, the descendants of the victims are justly due restitution, compensation, satisfaction and guarantees of non-repetition.

While we view the increasing global recognition of CARICOM’s Ten Point Plan for Reparatory Justice, as well as the establishment of the UN Permanent Forum for People of African Descent as valuable outcomes of the current Decade, we recognise that we are yet to realise some fundamental objectives of impacting the material condition, the security and dignity of African descended people and, in particular, that of women and girls who continue to be the most marginalised groups.

CARICOM recognises the importance of global solidarity in the fight for justice. The Region has been advancing the reparations agenda in the United Nations and in collaboration with the African Union. I can assure you that we will continue to use all available channels and inter-governmental fora to address the legacies that have contributed, in large measure, to underdevelopment in the Region. CARICOM’s experience in seeking redress for native genocide and chattel enslavement has demonstrated that advancing justice for the people of the Region requires political will, broad civil society inclusion and cultural engagement.

As the International Decade for People of African Descent ends this year, I am pleased to convey the full support of CARICOM Heads of Government for the observance of a Second International Decade for People of African Descent. Efforts by our Member States towards this objective are ongoing in the current Seventy-Ninth session of the UN General Assembly.

The goals of equality, equity, and social justice cannot be achieved in a decade. They require sustained effort by governments, international organisations and civil society. We must continue to push for change to dismantle systemic inequalities faced by people of African descent as well as the descendants of our indigenous peoples.

We must ensure that our voices are heard at the highest levels of government, intergovernmental organizations and international aagencies. And, we must continue to fight for a world in which every person, regardless of race or background, can live with dignity and equal opportunity.

We invite you to let us partner together to advance this important agenda for reparatory justice.

Thank you.