45. 在从殖民主义和奴隶制中受益最多的国家中，仍然存在对赔偿殖民主义和奴隶制的严重的政治反对态度。例如，在 2001 年在德班举行的反对种族主义世界会议的筹备阶段和会议期间，某些前殖民大国仍然坚决反对正式就奴隶制和殖民主义道歉，也坚决反对承认迫切需要赔偿。在筹备反对种族主义世界会议的美洲区域会议上，与会国通过了以下强有力的声明，承认：对非洲人及其后裔和美洲土著人民的奴役和其他形式的欺压、及奴隶贸易，应受到道义上的谴责，在某些情况下构成国内法规定的罪行，如果发生在今天，将构成国际法规定的罪行。[并且]这些行为对上述人民造成了巨大和持久的经济、政治和文化伤害，而为了正义，现在需要国家和国际上作出重大的努力来补偿这种损害。这种赔偿应采取政策、方案和措施的形式，由那些从这种做法中获得实质性利益的国家实施，以期补救对受害社区和人民造成的经济、文化和政治损害。154
45. Serious political opposition to reparations for colonialism and slavery remains among the countries that benefited the most from both. For example, during both the lead-up to and at the World Conference against Racism held in Durban in 2001, certain former colonial powers remained staunchly resistant to formal apologies for slavery and colonialism, and to any acknowledgment of the pressing need for reparations. At the Regional Conference of the Americas in preparation for the World Conference against Racism, participating States adopted the following strong statement acknowledging that: the enslavement and other forms of servitude of Africans and their descendants and of the indigenous peoples of the Americas, as well as the slave trade, were morally reprehensible, in some cases constituted crimes under domestic law and, if they occurred today, would constitute crimes under international law. [And that] these practices have resulted in substantial and lasting economic, political and cultural damage to these peoples and that justice now requires that substantial national and international efforts be made to repair such damage. Such reparation should be in the form of policies, programmes and measures to be adopted by the States which benefited materially from these practices, and designed to rectify the economic, cultural and political damage which has been inflicted on the affected communities and peoples.154