Prince William and Kate are on a week-long tour of the region, visiting Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas for a series of engagements to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee year, which marks 70 years on the throne.
However, protests have begun to overshadow the trip after a small group of protesters gathered outside the British High Commission in the Jamaican capital Kingston on Tuesday to demand an apology from Britain.
Some chanted ‘Apologies now, reparations now’ while others held placards and placards reading ‘Apologies’ and ‘Let’s update’. Let’s abolish the Queen’s rule”.
A royal engagement in Belize on Saturday was also called off due to reported opposition from local residents.
The relationship between Britain and Jamaica dates back centuries. The island was conquered by the British in 1655 and remained under their rule until gaining independence in 1962, but remained a Commonwealth realm with the Queen as head of state. The majority of Jamaicans are of African descent and are the descendants of slaves brought into the country by European colonists.
William and Kate were due to meet Jamaica’s prime minister on Wednesday, before visiting a school, hospital and a project helping at-risk young men, ahead of a dinner hosted by Jamaica’s governor-general, at which William will deliver a speech.
Jamaica will celebrate 60 years of independence from Britain this August, but some in the country are hoping to seize the moment to transition to a republic.
Growing republic debate
At Tuesday’s protest, human rights activist Kay Osborne told Reuters: “It is an insult to these young people (the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge) to be here to try and persuade us to maintain the status quo, when our aim is to loosen and remove the hands, the queen’s gloved hands from around our necks so that we may breathe.”
Meanwhile, former Jamaican Senator Imani Duncan-Price told the news outlet she was attending the protest “because we started our independence economically weak after being plundered by the monarchy; who today live off the benefits of that wealth. “
“We have not forgotten sixty years of independence and we demand an apology and redress,” an unidentified woman told protesters through a megaphone, according to Reuters video.
Debate over whether the country should sever ties with London has increased over the past year since its regional neighbor Barbados deposed Queen Elizabeth II as head of state and replaced her with its first-ever president, Sandra Mason.
On Sunday, two days before the Cambridges arrived in Jamaica, a coalition of 100 prominent Jamaican individuals and organizations signed an open letter to the couple, urging them to be accountable and “initiate a process of redress.”
“We see no reason to celebrate the 70th anniversary of your grandmother’s accession to the British throne, as her leadership and that of her predecessors perpetuated the greatest human rights tragedy in human history,” reads part of the letter.
“Her accession to the throne in February 1952 came 14 years after the workers’ uprising of 1938 against inhuman working and living conditions and treatment of workers; painful legacies of plantation slavery that endure to this day,” she continued.
“During her 70 years on the throne, your grandmother did nothing to atone for and atone for the suffering of our ancestors that occurred during her reign and/or throughout Britain’s trade in Africans, enslavement, indebtedness and colonization .”
Some members of the British media traveling with the royal couple have reported that William will address these chapters of British history when he speaks later on Wednesday.
Belize engagement broken off
William’s father, Prince Charles, previously acknowledged the “appalling atrocity of slavery” during a speech marking Barbados’ transition to a republic last November, 55 years after Barbados declared its independence from Britain.
“Ever since the darkest days of our past and the horrifying cruelties of slavery that forever stain our history, the people of this island have blazed their trail with extraordinary fortitude. Emancipation, self-government and independence were your waypoints. Freedom, justice and self-determination were your guiding principles,” he said.
Demonstrations at royal tours are not uncommon and this trip was no exception.
Things seemed to get off to a rocky start when organizers had to call off an engagement in Belize on Saturday, the first full day of William and Kate’s tour.
The couple were due to visit the Akte ‘il Ha cocoa farm in the foothills of the Maya Mountains, but the stop was reportedly canceled on Friday due to opposition from residents of Indian Creek village. An engagement with a similar producer was scheduled later.
Ahead of the trip, Kensington Palace said in a statement that the Duke and Duchess are “very excited about their tour of the Caribbean and the opportunity to thank the communities in Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas for the support they have shown her.” have majesty during their seventy year reign.”
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