Silence on Reparations: A test of leadership and national conscience

Read Comments Comments (1)

• Nsia 1 day ago

  @Massa, you mean we should speak with one voice with those whose ancestors were the slave raiders and traders? And, does your idea of correction and justice applicable to them? IIam only asking. Thanks!
  
  
  From 1700 to the ...
  read full comment

  @Massa, you mean we should speak with one voice with those whose ancestors were the slave raiders and traders? And, does your idea of correction and justice applicable to them? IIam only asking. Thanks!
  
  
  From 1700 to the 1890s, the Ashanti (Asante) Kingdom’s slave trade was largely driven by its central administration, specifically the Asantehene (King) and elite military leaders who supplied captives from conquered territories to European (British/Dutch) traders for guns and goods. Prominent rulers included Osei Tutu, who founded the kingdom and initiated its expansion, and Opoku Ware I, who expanded it further, facilitating massive slave trade.
  
  Key Figures and Structures in the Ashanti Slave Trade
  Asantehene (The Kings): The Asantehene was the primary authority directing the trade. Rulers like Osei Tutu (c. 1700) and Opoku Ware I (1720–1750) solidified the kingdom’s power, using war captives to feed the demand for slaves.
  
  Military Elites/Commanders: Ashanti generals and provincial governors were crucial for capturing people during expansionary wars into neighboring regions (such as Gaman, Denkera, and Akwamu).
  
  The Akwamu: Early in the 18th century, the Akwamu were close allies of the Ashanti and key middlemen supplying captives to European merchants on the coast.
  
  Coastal Middlemen and Brokers: Traders who operated between Kumasi and the British/Dutch forts on the Gold Coast ensured that slaves were traded for firearms, creating a "guns-for-slaves" cycle.
  
  The Asantehene’s Agents: In later periods, such as the 1830s, official negotiators like Akyeamehene Akwasi Akuoko were influential in managing trade agreements.
  
  
  Role in the Trade
  The Ashanti Kingdom was one of the largest suppliers of slaves to European colonial empires on the Gold Coast, utilizing the captured individuals to obtain, weapons and wealth. Slave trade was closely tied to military conquest, where defeated nations paid tribute in people. While the British outlawed the trade in 1807, the Ashanti continued it throughout much of the 19th century until British colonization in the 1890s.

  reply