Is it time for Queen Elizabeth II to stop being the head of state of countries that were British colonies in Latin America and the Caribbean? Barbados has already decided yes, and held its crown separation ceremony in November last year. The royal family acted condescendingly, sending Prince Charles — first in line — to smile and support the locals, keeping up appearances.
But the list of countries on this side of the Atlantic that still have the British monarch as leader (albeit symbolic) of the state is still long. To calm the spirits of activists who were enthusiastic about the Barbados initiative, the Queen sent two jewels in her crown to spread her sympathy in Jamaica, Belize and the Bahamas. After all, this 2022 marks the 70th anniversary of her reign, and the royal family does not want to spoil the party photo.
The three countries are independent but remain part of the Commonwealth and retain the Queen as head of state. The idea was for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to travel to show that there is no contradiction in this, the times of oppression are long gone and now everyone should be friends. Many inhabitants of these countries, however, do not agree with the idea and prefer a total separation, as Barbados did.
During the visit, there were protests, letters and harsh words to the royal family, often demanding a formal apology. This one didn’t come, despite a few mild words from William in an attempt to put a lid on the discussion.
The first scare was in Belize, when the couple was prevented from landing their helicopter in a region where peasants were against the visit. After the setback, William and Kate were in a region of Mayan ruins and a cocoa plantation.
It was in Jamaica that resistance was strongest. The country celebrates the 60th anniversary of its independence in August, and many Jamaicans believe that the time has come to remove the queen as head of a state that has been free for so long. Furthermore, a group of more than 200 intellectuals and prominent figures in society asked the royal family to apologize for the pain and damage caused to the country by slavery and colonization and offer some kind of reparation.
The letter they signed reads: “We see no reason to celebrate the 70th anniversary of your grandmother’s accession to the throne of the United Kingdom because her leadership, like that of her predecessors, perpetuated the greatest human rights tragedy in human history. We have nothing to celebrate in the 70 years of the Queen’s reign, because for us they were years of great suffering”.
The text also called on the monarchy and the government of the United Kingdom to give “a public apology for the crimes against humanity committed by the British, including the exploitation of the natives of Jamaica, the slave trade, the exploitation of goods from our land and the colonization in general”.
If William and Kate were just hoping to sunbathe, sail and dance to local rhythms, the reception was not exactly what they expected. The document further accused the couple, specifically, of being “direct beneficiaries of the exploration of the Caribbean.”
At a demonstration in Kingston, Jamaica, outside an official local government reception for the couple, there were signs that asked: “Who voted for the Queen? Not me”, or said: “You belong in fairy tales, not Jamaica”. .
In his final speech, William tried to respond to the protests, but without promises or formal apologies. “I agree with my father, who recently said in Barbados that slavery was an atrocity that will forever mark our history. I express my deep sadness. Slavery was an abhorrent thing that should never have happened.”
If the prince’s words offer any comfort, they still aren’t the formal apologies these countries expect from the British. And one of the queen’s reflections in this celebration of her 70 years of reign should be, in fact, if it makes any sense that she is the monarch of nations so far from the United Kingdom and that suffered so much during British colonization.
