King Charles acknowledges ‘painful’ past as calls for slavery reparations grow at Commonwealth summit

Some leaders had hoped Charles might use his speech at Chogm in Samoa as an opportunity to apologise for Britain’s colonial past

King Charles acknowledged “painful aspects” of Britain’s past while sidestepping calls to directly address reparations for slavery at the summit of Commonwealth leaders, saying “none of us can change the past, but we can commit … to learning its lessons”.

Charles was speaking to leaders representing 56 Commonwealth nations at the Commonwealth heads of government meeting (Chogm) in the Pacific nation of Samoa, his first time attending the summit since taking the throne. In his speech, the king also addressed the climate crisis, development challenges and paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth.

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