The Church of England on Tuesday (January 10th) issued an apology for the past links with slavery of a financial body linked to it. Today a vast process of compensation for victimized communities is underway.
With our correspondent in London, Sidonie Gaucher
” I am deeply sorry. The time has come to take action in response to this shameful past said Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.
The spiritual leader of the Church of England has apologized after a report emerged that ” the endowment of Church Commissioners had historical ties with the transatlantic slave trade.
Originally, the Commissioners of the Church of England was intended to help poorer members of the clergy. However, we learn that this fund had received donations from slave traders, and invested significant amounts in the South Sea Company, which traded in African slaves.
The organization has promised a compensation fund of 100 million pounds (more than 113 million euros), part of which will go to “ communities that were affected by slavery “.
The United Kingdom is dealing with the legacy of its colonial past. In 2020, the Church had called ” shame » the fact that some of its members had « actively profited of slavery.