SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The royals are coming, and the Caribbean wants to be heard.
Islanders are seeking slavery reparations from Britain, a formal apology for its role in the slave trade and greater independence from the former colonial power.
The Bahamas National Reparations Committee said it already knows what awaits the Caribbean as King Charles III and Queen Camilla prepare for this week's trip: “Schools emptied of children who will stand
in the sun and wave for the Crown that has taken everything from their ancestors and comes back smiling.”
Charles is expected to visit the Bahamas on Tuesday to begin the nine-day trip to the Caribbean. His last official visit to the archipelago was in July 1973 as a prince who granted the Bahamas independence, ending 300 years of British rule. But the Bahamas remains a Commonwealth realm, along with six other Caribbean nations that recognize Charles as their king and head of state.
While in the Bahamas, Charles is scheduled to visit Clifford Park, where the archipelago’s black, turquoise and yellow flag was raised for the first time more than half a century ago.
His visit will raise important questions, said Niambi Hall Campbell-Dean, chair of the Bahamas National Reparations Committee.
“Why do we still have a king? What does this person really represent to us? Why is he coming and how will that benefit us?” she said.
A psychology professor at the University of the Bahamas, Campbell-Dean said she recently mentioned Charles’ upcoming visit to her students, and they were not excited. She responded: “I know y’all might not care about this man who is coming, but here’s why this is of importance.”
Leaders across the Caribbean have long been pushing for an apology and reparations from Britain.
In early September, Jamaica took its case for reparations to Charles, and the case has since been referred to the United Kingdom’s highest court of appeal for the Caribbean island. It was an unprecedented legal maneuver, even though the British government has consistently rejected demands for either an apology or reparations.
After three days in the Bahamas, Charles is scheduled to fly to the South American country of Guyana. The former British colony was the site of one of the biggest slave revolts in the region during the colonial era, with thousands of slaves uprising during the 1823 Demerara rebellion on the plantation owned by the father of former British Prime Minister William Gladstone.
More than 200 slaves were killed as a result; several were decapitated and their heads placed on poles.
In a recent interview with ITV News, Guyanese President Irfaan Ali said Charles has “rightfully recognized slavery as the darkest days in human history.”
“Moving to the apology is the next step,” he added. “You exploited the region. You destroyed lives. You created underdevelopment.”
While in Guyana, Charles is expected to meet with Ali and elected leaders of Amerindian villages known as “toshaos.”
Nikita Miller, toshao of Chinese Landing, a rural Amerindian community in northern Guyana, said she was not invited.
She noted that her community has been mired in a decades-long land fight with miners seeking to extract gold from the area, and she would have liked the opportunity to talk about an issue that affects other toshaos as well.
“We have been suffering,” she said. “We want the government to respect Indigenous rights. … We have long-standing issues with our land.”
Miller said she believes the king’s visit might help improve things for Guyana overall, but not for Amerindian villages.
After two days in Guyana, Charles is scheduled to fly to Antigua and Barbuda for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and meet with leaders of 56 member states. Talks are expected to focus on climate, trade and development, but some Caribbean leaders have said slavery reparations should dominate conversations.
The British royals have long visited Jamaica, but it’s not on Charles' itinerary this time.
It’s just as well, said 51-year-old Rastafarian Steven Bennett.
“We don’t need any royal wave or photo-taking while the wounds of our ancestors are still being ignored. He still refuses to formally apologize for chattel slavery,” Bennett said. “Until the British monarchy is ready to stand on Jamaican soil, look us in the eye, apologize, and talk about actual repair and restitution, he has no business here. We want justice, not a parade.”
Jamaica in recent years has been pushing to oust Charles as head of state and become a republic like Barbados did in 2021.
Antonio Williams, a 25-year-old university student, said young Jamaicans have zero connection to the Crown.
“I think Buckingham Palace has read the room after the absolute PR disaster of William and Kate’s Caribbean tour a few years back,” he said, referring to the 2022 visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales to the region, where they faced protests and calls for reparations.
“We are actively moving toward becoming a republic and breaking these colonial ties,” Williams said. “Having the king visit now would just be incredibly awkward. Skipping us is a sign that they know their influence here is expiring.”
But 68-year-old retired civil servant Hermine Reid recalled with fondness how Charles’ mother, Queen Elizabeth II, used to visit Jamaica.
“It was always such a grand, respectful occasion, and people would line the streets in their Sunday best,” she said. “Things are very different now. It’s a little sad for my generation to see how much the relationship has fractured, but I suppose this is simply the modern era. Jamaica is growing up and charting its own course, and the king clearly recognizes that.”
___
Myers Jr. reported from Kingston, Jamaica.
