BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 21. An international conference on the topic ‘Belgium's colonial injustice and 101-year path to reparations’ is taking place in Baku at the initiative of the Baku Initiative Group (BIG), TurkicWorld’s correspondent reports from the event.
The event is attended by officials from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Rwanda, and Burundi, former Belgian colonies where, as the organizers note, Belgium continues to exert neocolonial influence, as well as representatives from Morocco and the Republic of South Africa (RSA). UN representatives are also participating in the conference.
Among the participants are the DRC’s ombudsman, members of the Congolese parliament, Rwanda’s ambassador to Türkiye, diplomats, and UN experts.
In addition, the conference is attended by experts in international law, historical justice, and reparations, as well as researchers, human rights defenders, and other specialists.
Conference participants are discussing the promotion, within the UN agenda, including that of the UN Human Rights Council, of the issue of Belgium issuing an official apology and paying compensation for crimes committed during the colonial period against the peoples of the DRC, Rwanda, and Burundi.
Particular attention is being paid to the development of a binding international mechanism to monitor Belgium’s compliance with its obligations regarding reparations and restitution in accordance with the principles enshrined in UN General Assembly Resolution 60/147.
In addition, the conference focuses on ensuring full and unimpeded access to Belgian colonial archives, involving specialists from former colonial territories in the relevant processes on an equal footing with international experts, and returning human remains and other historical materials to their countries of origin.
Will be updated
