United Nations, Mar 27 (NNN-APP) The UN General Assembly convened Monday to mark the 200th anniversary of the abolition of transatlantic slave trade, with many speakers calling for stepped up efforts to fight all forms of modern slavery.

At the session, which started with a performance by African drummers and dancers and a one-minute silence to remember the millions who perished in the slave trade and subsequent servitude, many called for steps to tackle human trafficking, forced labour, other forms of slavery-like practices.

“The fact that these atrocities take place in our world today should fill us all with shame,� said UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro.

“Let us not only look back on a tragic period of human history. Let us shine a light on the crimes against humanity that are taking place today, in the shadows all around us,� Migiro said. “Let us work to prevent them from happening in the future.�

“We must act together to stop crimes that deprive countless victims of their liberty, dignity and human rights,� she said.

Kyaw Tint Swe, the ambassador of Myanmar, stressed that the tragic history of slave trade and slavery must not be allowed to repeat.

Rosemary Banks, the New Zealand ambassador who spoke on behalf of the Western European and Other States Group, urged vigilance in opposing all modern-day forms of human enslavement.

“Even today, millions of fellow human beings are subjected to practices that fall within the United Nations’ definition of enslavement,� she said. “Sexual and debt enslavement and the forcible involvement of children in armed conflict are among many examples of practices which hark back to the days of centuries past.�

Dumisani Kumalo, the South African ambassador who spoke on behalf of the African Group of States, said Africa was still nursing the wounds of slavery, and that the slave trade was at the heart of the profound social and economic inequality, hatred, bigotry, racism and prejudice that continued to impact people of African descent everywhere.

Citing statistics that suggest a cow in Europe received far more subsidy than an African child received in development aid, Kumalo urged developed countries to honour their promise of allocating 0.7 percent of their gross national product in development assistance.

There were also calls for “a complete and unequivocal apology� from nations that “supported and profited from the inhumane activities� of slave trade and slavery.

“It is undisputed that such nations were developed on the blood, sweat and tears of our enslaved forefathers, and it is only right, and the decent thing to do, to make amends and extend their apologies into the realm of atonement for the legal and economic support and for the atrocities that were the norm of the Slave Trade and Slavery,� said Denzil Douglas, prime minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, who spoke on behalf of the Caribbean Community.

He demanded that those countries offer an official apology in the form of reparation.

On March 25, 1807, the British parliament passed an Abolition of the Slave Trade Act. The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution last November to designate March 26 of this year a day for worldwide commemoration of the event.