French Senate finally repeals slaveholding Code Noir — Anadolu Agency

The French Senate unanimously supported the final repeal of the Code Noir, a body of royal decrees that regulated slavery in the French colonial empire. The decision completed the legislative process, as the National Assembly also unanimously approved the document in May.

Laws from the time of Louis XIV

The Code Noir was introduced by King Louis XIV in 1685. It defined the rights, duties and restrictions for enslaved people and their owners. In particular, these decrees equated enslaved people with movable property, making it possible to buy and sell them.

The legislation also provided for harsh punishments for attempted escape, including mutilation, branding and the death penalty. Slavery in the French colonies was abolished in 1848, but the royal decrees themselves and related provisions were not formally removed from French legislation, although they no longer had legal force.

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Report on the consequences of colonial laws

As Anadolu Agency reports, the adopted law also requires the government to prepare a report on the legacy of colonial laws, their lasting impact, including in relation to racism, as well as the teaching of the history of slavery in French schools.

At the same time, the law does not cover demands for compensation for slavery, which continue to be raised in several of France's overseas territories.