Spain and Africa have come a long way. Their relationship it dates back to the early centuries, especially during the slave trade. The Spaniards were among the people who voyaged to Africa to cart away able bodied men and women for the purpose of forced labour.

In the process, a lot of unfortunate Africans who were caught in the drag net of the slave masters suffered the worst form of degradation, humiliation and torture, just to get them subdued for the task ahead. Some of them, especially, the feeble who could not bear the pains were happy to have died as a way of escape. Many of the Africans who proved stubborn and made it difficult to freight the human cargoes to Europe were either outrightly killed or thrown overboard ships alive.

The slave hunting adventurers finally landed the caged blacks on European soil and it was an entirely different kettle of fish. There was no escape for any of them; they were completely cut off from their ancestral home, their roots, culture and above all their joy and future were snatched from them.

Even there, some of the very stubborn blacks who could not stand the humiliation of the slavish treatment still attempted to escape even if it meant swimming across the Atlantic. Some of them who were not too lucky after they were caught were summarily executed. Attempting to escape was a capital offence which attracted death as penalty.

Also, none of the escaping slaves would have successfully swum across the Atlantic; they would have made sumptuous meals for the sharks, crocodile and other dangerous aquatic creatures.

As the Wikpaedia puts it; "the first Europeans to use African slaves in the New World were the Spaniards who sought auxiliaries for their conquest expeditions and labourers on islands such as Cuba and Hispaniola, where the alarming death rate in the native population had spurred the first royal laws protecting the native population (Laws of Burgos, 1512-1513). In general, however, the Spaniards were known for their continued harsh treatment of slaves until the end of trade in the 1800s. The first African slaves arrived Hispaniola in 1501.

"As European nations grew more powerful, especially Portugal, Spain, France, Great Britain and the Netherlands, they began vying for control of African slave trade, with little effect on the local African and Arab trading. Great Britain's existing colonies in the Lesser Antilles and their effective naval control of the Mid Atlantic forced other countries to abandon their enterprises due to inefficiency in cost.

The English crown provided a charter giving the Royal African Company monopoly over the African slave routes until 1712. These areas all developed an insatiable demand for slaves". The horrendous situation continued for nearly 500 years until eventually in the 19th century it was abolished. Blacks heaved a sigh of relief because before the abolition, slave trade was the biggest business in Europe; every family in Europe and America was dealing in slaves.

Even white crooks and murderers became respectable men through slave trade. Some of the richest men in Europe and America including whole families then could trace their wealth to slave trade blood money.

Definitely, it is possible to find families still reaping the cash fruits of slave trade. Most countries of Europe and America can still boast that the wealth and development which made them advanced nations actually came from slave trade and all the bestiality associated with it.

Africans who suffered the holocaust of slavery, although freed from it, did not make any form of demand for reparation until several years later and that has not been paid up till date, not even an apology from the slave trading countries.

Today Africa is underdeveloped while the countries which used some of the best African brains and energy to develop themselves are laughing and calling the continent all sorts of names. The shame must remain with the countries that promoted slave trade and not on Africa.

Spain came to the same African soil they plundered centuries ago and for the very first time in their history, won the coveted World Cup. The Cup has eluded them all these years and chances are that if the World Cup had been played elsewhere other than Africa, they would not have won the cup. It has nothing to do with mysticism and occultism like many believe of the Octopus Paul.

Somehow, the African soil became favourable to the Spaniards and they clinched the Cup that evaded their grip since they began campaign to rule the world football-wise.

Now that they have received an unquantifiable blessing from Africa, would they get on the frontline to demand reparation on behalf of the plundered and now neglected continent as a way of showing gratitude for the good fortune Africa brought to them?