- Ethiopians struggle with bitter pill of currency reform
- Sri Lanka votes in first poll since economic collapse
- Feminist author warns of abortion disaster if Trump wins US election
- US city of Flint still reeling from water crisis, 10 years on
- Arsenal's mean defence faces acid test to shut out Man City again
- Late surge lifts Thailand's Jeeno to LPGA Queen City lead
- DeChambeau says PGA's Ryder Cup decision 'just the start'
- Alcaraz defeated on Laver Cup debut
- Postecoglou embraces 'struggle' to make Spurs a success
- Nice hand 'ashamed' Saint-Etienne 8-0 Ligue 1 mauling
- Boeing CEO says ending strike 'a top priority'
- Harris slams Trump for hypocrisy on abortion as US starts voting
- Academy to host first overseas ceremony to honor young filmmakers
- No doctor necessary: US okays nasal spray flu vaccine for self-use
- Former delivery man Baldwin leads star names at PGA Championship
- Trump shooting: Secret Service admits complacency
- Can an ambitious Milei make Argentina an AI giant?
- Haiti, its suffering growing, in 'race against time': UN expert
- Ibrahim Aqil, the Hezbollah elite unit commander wanted by the US
- Chinese forward Cui signs NBA contract with Brooklyn Nets
- US Fed dissenter calls for 'measured' pace of rate cuts
- Guardiola tells players to lead change over workload as Kompany demands cap on games
- Norway limits wild salmon fishing as stocks hit new lows
- Top Hezbollah commander killed in Israeli strike on Beirut
- Rotterdam fatal knife attacker suspected of 'terrorist motive'
- First early votes cast in knife-edge US presidential election
- Top-ranked Swiatek out of Beijing due to 'personal matters'
- Hard-right Reform UK looks to the future after vote success
- Embiid agrees to NBA contract extension with 76ers
- Joshua aims to complete road to redemption in Dubois bout
- World champion Bagnaia sets pace with lap record at Misano
- Biden says 'working' to get people back to homes on Israel-Lebanon border
- Pope criticises Argentina's crackdown on protesters
- Court limits screenings of videos in France mass rape case
- Gurbaz century takes Afghanistan to 311-4 in 2nd ODI
- Central banks face 'difficult balancing act': IMF chief
- Guardiola tells players to lead change over workload fears
- Paris Olympics sports equipment moves to new homes
- 'Happy' Kinghorn relishing life at Toulouse
- Norris sets Singapore pace as Verstappen only 15th
- Germany to bid to host women's Euro 2029
- Portugal brings deadly forest fires under control
- Postecoglou defends Solanke after slow start to Spurs career
- US nuclear plant Three Mile Island to reopen to power Microsoft
- Arteta urges Arsenal to take next step in Man City showdown
- Stock markets fall after Fed-fuelled rally
- Poland charges Russian over attack on Navalny ally: prosecutors
- Man City have rest 'advantage' in Arsenal showdown: Guardiola
- Maresca has 'no doubt' in Jackson as Chelsea's number nine
- EU chief announces 35 bn euro loan plan for Ukraine before winter
Dutch king makes historic apology for slavery
Dutch King Willem-Alexander issued a historic royal apology Saturday for the Netherlands' involvement in slavery, saying he felt "personally and intensely" affected.
His speech before thousands of descendants of slaves from the South American nation of Suriname and the Caribbean islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao got a positive reception, but many said they wanted the Netherlands to pay compensation.
"Today I'm standing here in front of you as your king and as part of the government. Today I am apologising personally," Willem-Alexander said to loud cheers.
"I am intensely experiencing this with my heart and soul," the monarch said.
The "Keti Koti" ("breaking the chains" in Surinamese) event to commemorate 150 years of the abolition of slavery in former Dutch colonies, was held under a light drizzle in the capital's Oosterpark gardens.
Many of the participants wore colourful Surinamese clothes.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte had officially apologised in December on behalf of the government.
It was not certain whether the monarch would follow suit for a trade that had brought vast riches to his ancestors in the House of Orange.
But the king said: "Slave trading and slavery is recognised as a crime against humanity."
"The monarchs and rulers of the House of Orange took no steps against it," he said.
"Slavery illustrates the injustices of these laws," prevalent at the time which allowed trade in human beings, the king said in his speech, aired live on television.
"Today, I am asking for forgiveness for the crystal-clear lack of action".
- 'We need reparations' -
Those present widely welcomed the apology.
"He told the people from Suriname he was sorry," said Abmena Ryssan, 67, who was dressed in bright robes and exotic headgear -- a three-legged cooking pot adorned with Surinamese flags.
"Maybe he can now do something for black people," Ryssan told AFP.
"We need reparations," added Lulu Helder, a teacher whose ancestors were slaves.
"He took responsibility, so I forgive him," said Arnolda Vaal, 50, dressed in a slave woman's traditional outfit.
Since the Black Lives Matter movement emerged in the United States, the Netherlands has embarked on an often difficult debate about its colonial and slave trading past that turned it into one of the world's richest countries.
Dutch royals have often found themselves at the centre of the debate.
A study released in June found that the royal family earned 545 million euros ($595 million) in today's terms between 1675 and 1770 from the colonies, where slavery was widespread.
The current king's ancestors, Willem III, Willem IV and Willem V, were among the biggest earners from what the Dutch report called the state's "deliberate, structural and long-term involvement" in slavery.
- Slavery funded Dutch 'Golden Age' -
In 2022 King Willem-Alexander announced that he was ditching the royal Golden Coach that traditionally transported him on state occasions because it had images of slavery on the sides.
One side panel had a picture called "Tribute of the Colonies" depicting kneeling black people handing over produce like cocoa and sugarcane to their white masters.
Rutte in December also described slavery as a "crime against humanity" when he delivered the long-awaited apology, and Dutch ministers travelled to seven former colonies.
The king said days later, in his Christmas address, that the government apology was the "start of a long journey".
Slavery was formally abolished in Suriname and other Dutch-held lands on July 1, 1863, but only ended in 1873 after a 10-year "transition" period.
The Dutch funded their "Golden Age" of empire and culture in the 16th and 17th centuries by shipping around 600,000 Africans as part of the slave trade, mostly to South America and the Caribbean.
G.Teles--PC