Various Days offer the International
Community the occasion to meet on the issue of slave trade and slavery. They
provide the necessary opportunity for a memory duty on this sad page of our
history, in order to honour all the victims of four centuries of human tragedy,
but also those who opposed and triumphed over this “crime against humanity”.
These commemorative days serve to
deepen the reflexion on the contemporary consequences of this tragedy and its
implications in our society today, namely racism and racial discrimination,
intolerance, but also all the modern forms of slavery, of exploitation and of
human bondage.
- International Day of Remembrance of Victims of Slavery and Transatlantic Slave Trade (25 march)
The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed on 17
December 2007 Resolution A/RES/62/122 adopting
the 25 March as the International Day of Remembrance of Victims of Slavery and
Transatlantic Slave Trade.
The goal of this commemoration is to focus on the 400
years that lasted transatlantic slave trade as well as its long term
consequences in the world. More
- International Day for the Remembrance of Slave Trade and of its Abolition (23 August)
As an answer to the growing interest to and
expectations generated by the launching in 1994 of The Slave Route Project,
UNESCO’s General Conference, by its Resolution29/C40,
proclaimed the 23 August International Day for the Remembrance of Slave Trade
and of its Abolition.
Restating historical facts,
development of international solidarity, promotion of tolerance and human
rights by a mobilization and implication of all stakeholders (Member States,
International organizations and Non Governmental Organisations, civil society
and private sector), constitute the major stakes ahead this celebration
This date symbolises the fact that
slaves were the principal actors of their freedom. Effectively, the
insurrection that occurred in Saint Domingue (today Republic of Haiti and
Dominican Republic), in the night of 22 to 23 August 1791, irremediably
affected slavery system. This revolt was the start point to the transatlantic
slave trade abolition process. Besides, this date pays tribute to the historic
resistance that leaded to the creation of the first black independent State,
the Republic of Haiti. More
- International Day for the Abolition of Slavery (2 December)
The International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, 2
December, recalls the date of the adoption, by the General Assembly, of the
United Nations Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of
the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others (Resolution 317(IV))
of 2 December 1949). More
- International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition (2004)
By its Resolution 57/195, the United
Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2004 International Year to Commemorate the
Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition. This Year marked the bicentenary
and the creation of the first black State, Haiti. This country symbolises the
struggle and resistance of slaves that enabled the triumph of principles of
freedom, equality, dignity and individual’s rights. This commemoration has also
provided an avenue for a fraternal gathering between Africa, Europe, the
Caribbean and the Americas.
