Which instrument was the first major international effort to condemn the African slave trade?

• A. Geneva Convention 1949
• B. Trafficking in Persons Protocol 2000
• C. General Act of the Brussels Conference relating to the African Slave Trade
• D. 1956 Supplementary Convention

Answer: (C)

The earliest international move to condemn the African slave trade is shown by the General Act of the Brussels Conference relating to the African Slave Trade. Signed in 1890 by major powers, this agreement marks the first coordinated effort for international action against the trade. It created a framework for cooperation among signatories to monitor ships, suppress slave trading along the African coast, and punish offenders, with mechanisms for reporting actions taken. This makes it the first major international instrument dedicated to condemning and curbing the slave trade.

The other options come later or address related issues rather than initiating the condemnation. The Geneva Convention of 1949 deals with humanitarian law in armed conflict, not specifically the slave trade. The 1956 Supplementary Convention builds on abolition efforts but follows the Brussels Act chronologically. The Trafficking in Persons Protocol of 2000 is a modern instrument addressing trafficking more broadly, long after the Brussels Conference.