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Mexico snubs Spanish King as spat over colonial past flares up

Mexico City, Mexico/Madrid, Spain Reuters A fight dating back more than five centuries reemerged on Wednesday as Mexico’s incoming President defended a decision to not invite the Spanish King to her inauguration next week after the monarch declined to apologise for colonial-era abuses. Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez also weighed in earlier in the day, […]

Europe’s racial disparities cannot be untied from historical wrongs, report says

Reuters Racial disparities in some European nations cannot be tackled if legacies of colonialism and slavery are ignored, a report by a EU-wide network of anti-racism groups said on Wednesday. The “Europe’s Original Sin” report analysed the historic use by six former colonial powers – Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain – of […]

Vatican recalls stamp celebrating Portugal’s colonial empire after complaints

The sword of the Royal House of Avis on a stylised cross decorates the 56-metre high Monument to the Discoveries by the Tagus river in Lisbon, on 30th March, 2023.

Rome, Italy AP The Vatican has recalled a postage stamp promoting this year’s World Youth Day in Portugal following complaints that it celebrated Portugal’s colonial empire and the nationalist dictatorship of Antonio Salazar at a time when the Holy See has been atoning for colonial-era abuses. The stamp, which was still available for purchase online Thursday, features […]

Netherlands PM Rutte apologises for role of Dutch state in slavery

Netherlands Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte

The Hague, The Netherlands Reuters Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Monday apologised on behalf of the Dutch State for its historical role in slavery, and for consequences that he acknowledged continue into the present day. “Today I apologise,” Rutte said in a nationally televised speech at the Dutch National Archives. “For centuries the Dutch state […]

Mixed feelings among some in Africa for Queen Elizabeth II

Nigeria Abuja British High Commission

Johannesburg, South Africa/Thika, Kenya Reuters As condolences poured in from around the world after Queen Elizabeth II’s death, there were mixed feelings among some Africans about the monarch and her country’s colonial legacy on a continent where Britain once ruled more than half the territory. Some had fond memories of Britain’s longest serving monarch – […]

Survivors of missing, slain Indigenous women in Canada impatient for action

Canada Indigenous women

Toronto, Canada Thomson Reuters Foundation A year ago, Canada announced that the disappearance and murder of thousands of Indigenous women amounted to genocide, raising hopes authorities would act to address the historic tragedy. Now the government says a plan of action is delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic, a development that survivors and advocates say […]