People of Belize reject Will and Kate – Jamaica’s about to do the same

William and Kate


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As William and Kate embark on a charm offensive tour of the Caribbean, people are taking to the streets and social media to let them know they’re not welcome.

The tour to commemorate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee began on 19 March. Their first stop is Belize, and locals have not let the visit go unchallenged. In a victory for the people – and embarrassingly for the Royals – a visit to Indian Creek village was hastily cancelled due to protests. William and Kate had been due to visit a cacao farm owned by Flora and Fauna International (FFI), of which the prince is a patron. But residents held up signs saying “Colonial legacy of theft continues” because FFI continues to prevent the villagers from accessing land. The villagers said they felt “disrespected”, as they weren’t even told about the impending visit.

Britain should apologise for “crimes against humanity”

Next on William and Kate’s tour is Jamaica. People plan to take to the streets in the capital of Kingston too. As race correspondent Nadine White tweets:

Read on...

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August will see the island’s 60th anniversary of independence from British colonial rule. Inevitably, the Jamaican people are questioning how a nation can possibly decolonise if queen Elizabeth is still head of state. So, for the royals, the visit to Jamaica will be especially important as they use their charm to try to prevent the island from doing what Barbados did in November 2020, when it removed Elizabeth as its head.

The open letter, written by Advocates Network (an alliance of Jamaican activists and human rights associations), reads:

We will not participate in your Platinum Jubilee celebration!

It continues:

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.

We are of the view that 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 colonialization, is necessary to begin a process of healing, forgiveness, reconciliation and compensation.

Advocates Network has laid out 60 reasons why Britain needs to apologise and give reparations to Jamaica. The reasons include “the exploitation of indigenous people”, “capturing their land”, “for human trafficking across the Atlantic Ocean in the transatlantic trade of enslaved peoples”, and for “genocide and massacres”.

A crumbling monarchy

The royal tour will finish in the Bahamas. During the course of the visit, we should expect lots of images and videos in the mainstream press, showing the usual white saviourist actions of William and Kate as they pose for photos – decked in all their wealth. All the while they’ll try to persuade these nations that they shouldn’t cut ties with the monarchy.

Over the past year, the royal family has tried to salvage itself after numerous disgraces. We’ve seen Andrew Windsor buying his way out of child sexual assault allegations, while last year’s famous Harry and Meghan interview explicitly pointed out the current racism within the monarchy. The last thing the royals will want is for more commonwealth nations to cut ties with them.

Barbados, Belize, and Jamaica have all showed the royals that they need to go back to where they came from: it’s inevitable that more countries will follow suit.

Featured image via MSN / screengrab, resized to 770 x 403 px

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  • Show Comments

    1. Are you saying that these photographs on the front pages of the Mail, Express and all the rest and the footage shown on the BBC are presenting a false impression??????? I am totally shocked that anyone could be so devious as to try to hoodwink the public. I think someone should raise this at Prime Minister’s Questions because we know he always gives scrupulously honest responses.

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    2. Don’t make me larf!

      The so called ‘royals need to be pensioned off. They are well past their ‘sell by’ date. A British republic should dispense with the corrupt ‘Establishment’ land owners that inherited it all from their corrupt ancestors. They didn’t buy it. They stole it. Return it to the British people and let them collect the rents.

      The pomp and pageantry are good for tourist dollars so replaced the ‘royal’ cadgers with professional actors that can be fired for misbehavior. Hereditary corruption has no place in a real Democracy. ‘Royals’ are just hereditary dictators. Who needs them. We don’t.

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