King Charles tells Commonwealth countries’ summit the past can’t be changed as leaders ask Britain to reckon with slavery

King Charles III addresses reparations, climate change, and the Commonwealth's future at a summit in Samoa.

King Charles III told a summit of Commonwealth countries in Samoa on Friday (October 25, 2024) that the past could not be changed as he indirectly acknowledged calls from some of Britain’s former colonies for a reckoning over its role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

The British royal understood “the most painful aspects of our past continue to resonate," he told leaders in Apia. But King Charles stopped short of mentioning financial reparations that some leaders at the event have urged and instead exhorted them to find the “right language” and an understanding of history “to guide us towards making the right choices in future where inequality exists."

Also read: Should America pay reparations for slavery?

“None of us can change the past but we can commit with all our hearts to learning its lessons and to finding creative ways to right the inequalities that endure," said King Charles, who is attending his first Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) as Britain's head of state.

His remarks at the summit's official opening ceremony echoed comments a day earlier by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer that the meeting should avoid becoming mired in the past and “very, very long endless discussions about reparations.” The U.K. leader dismissed calls from Caribbean countries for leaders at the biennial event to explicitly discuss redress for Britain’s role in the slave trade and mention the matter in its final joint statement.

But Britain's handling of its involvement in the trans-Atlantic slave trade is seen by many observers as a litmus test for the Commonwealth's adaptation to a modern-day world, as other European nations and some British institutions have started to own up to their role in the trade.

“I think the time has come for this to be taken seriously,” said Jacqueline McKenzie, a partner at London law firm Leigh Day. “Nobody expects people to pay every single penny for what happened. But I think there needs to be negotiations."