Stephen Williams MP backs remembrance day for victims of slavery
May 26, 2006 7:00 AM
Liberal Democrat MP for Bristol West, Stephen Williams, has backed a call in parliament for a national day to remember the victims of the slave trade.
He has signed a Commons petition that calls on the government to follow the example set by the French, who have specified one day a year when their citizens can remember the involuntary sacrifices made by millions of slaves who helped contribute to the high standard of living enjoyed today.
Stephen Williams said "Rather than debating whether one city or another should be apologising for its own part in the slave trade, we should instead remember as a nation the victims of these terrible crimes against humanity. It achieves nothing to try and hold people to account for something that happened decades or centuries before they were born. It would be much more constructive for us to follow the example set by the French, and spend a day commemorating and learning about our history and the way it has influenced the modern world."
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