Former colony reportedly demands payback and prepares to dump the Queen
Dozens of prominent Jamaicans have officially rejected a visit by Britain’s Prince William and his wife, calling for an apology and reparations for slavery instead. A growing number are considering breaking ties with the monarchy altogether, as fellow Caribbean island nation Barbados did last year, and sources tell UK media the process of separation may be underway already.
The island nation is already in the process of removing the Queen as head of state, according to sources cited by the Independent, which claimed a “senior figure within the government” had been tasked with transitioning Jamaica to a republic.
Read more
Hundreds of protesters gathered to meet the royal couple outside the British High Commission building on Tuesday, and an open letter from a coalition of Jamaican politicians, business leaders, musicians, and other professionals calling itself the Advocates Network was handed over to the High Commission as well. The missive listed 60 reasons why the British monarchy should compensate Jamaica to celebrate its 60 years of independence, and reparations were front and center.
The group aren’t just seeking money – they want “economic social reparation,” like “building us proper hospitals, providing and making sure that our children are educated through college level, and making sure land is equally distributed,” explained human rights advocate Opal Adisa, a signatory to the letter, adding that an apology would be merely the “first step towards healing and reconciliation.”
However, the Advocates Network have clearly had enough of waiting.
“We see no reason to celebrate 70 years of the ascension of your grandmother to the British throne because her leadership, and that of her predecessors, have perpetuated the greatest human rights tragedy in the history of humankind,” the letter reads, calling for “an apology for British crimes against humanity, including but not limited to, the exploitation of the indigenous people of Jamaica, the transatlantic trafficking of Africans, the enslavement of Africans, indentureship and colonisation.”
