紀要論文

紀要論文

text

Osaka University Law Review. 2025, 72, p. 23-56

Slavery and Financial Compensation in Great Britain, France, the United States, and the Netherlands : A Comparative Legal-Historical Perspective

Van den Berg, Peter A. J.

Graduate School of Law and Politics, Osaka University

英語

text

2025-02

Articles

Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, and the United States abolished slavery in the nineteenth century, but the legacy of the harrowing practice continues to haunt these countries. They are consistently called on to recognise the immorality of the institution, apologise for their involvement therein, take measures to repair the damage caused to the countries and population groups involved, and offer financial compensation to the descendants of its victims individually. However, most of these states are reluctant to answer these calls. Some activists have made repeated efforts to legally force states to provide financial compensation, but this litigation has proved unsuccessful so far mostly due to the lapse of time and resulting difficulty of identifying the victims. However, the failure of civil litigation has not ended the discussion about compensating the descendants of enslaved persons. Compensation can also be pursued by more political means. In this context, there are relevant debates surrounding the financial consequences of the abolition of slavery in the nineteenth century. After all, several fundamental questions had to be answered in the process of emancipation: Who should be compensated? What should be the legal basis for this compensation? Who should bear the financial burden of emancipation? Interestingly, these debates show that slavery was already generally regarded as immoral at the time of abolition, which weakened the legal claim of the ‘owners’ of the freed slaves and strengthened the position of those freed. Thus, compensation became more a political than legal issue, where the outcome predominantly depended on the strength of a lobby and the funds and assets available.

100520

Slavery and Financial Compensation in Great Britain, France, the United States, and the Netherlands : A Comparative Legal-Historical Perspective

Van den Berg, Peter A. J.

Graduate School of Law and Politics, Osaka University

英語

2025-02

Osaka University Law Review

72

23

56

https://hdl.handle.net/11094/100520