World News

Jamaica Formally Tells Prince William and Kate that its Breaking Off With the Monarchy During their Caribbean Trip

Jamaica Formally Tells Prince William and Kate that its Breaking Off With the Monarchy During their Caribbean Trip
World News

Jamaica Formally Tells Prince William and Kate that its Breaking Off With the Monarchy During their Caribbean Trip

Jamaica Formally Tells Prince William and Kate that its Breaking Off With the Monarchy During their Caribbean Trip
Jamaica Formally Tells Prince William and Kate that its Breaking Off With the Monarchy During their Caribbean Trip

The Royal visit to the caribbean by Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton has not gone to plan at least so far. On the first stop of their trip, the couple were forced to cancel a visit on a farm in Belize due to protests and later Jamaican activists called on the Monarchy to apologise for slavery and pay reparations.This anti-monarchy sentiment was echoed when the Jamaican prime minister formerly broke it to the couple that Jamaica wanted to break from the monarchy and remove Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state."We're very, very happy to have you and we hope you've received a warm welcome of the people," he said."Jamaica is a very free and liberal country and the people are very expressive —and I'm certain that you would have seen the spectrum of expressions yesterday," he continued, referencing the couple's warm welcome in Trench Town, which followed a protest calling for slave reparations from the British monarchy in the country's capital."There are issues here, which as you know, are unresolved, but your presence gives us an opportunity for those issues to be placed in context, to be out front and center and to be addressed as best we can. But Jamaica is, as you would see, is a country that is proud of its history and very proud of what we have achieved. And we're moving on and we intend to� fulfill our true ambitions and destiny to become an independent, developed and prosperous country."Hours later, prince William expressed "sorrow" to Jamaicans for Britain's involvement in slavery at a state dinner in the capital Kingston."I want to express my profound sorrow. Slavery was abhorrent, and it should never have happened," William said, calling the transatlantic slave trade an atrocity that "forever stains our history."While the prince conveyed the "deep affection" his grandmother Queen Elizabeth II has for Jamaica and celebrated its diaspora's contributions to Britain, PM Holness said the country's move to a republican model was only a matter of time."It is inevitable that we will move towards becoming a republic in fulfillment of the will of the people of Jamaica and our ambitions of becoming an independent, developed and prosperous country," Holness tweeted after the men met Wednesday.Many in Jamaica don't see any sense of the British Monarchy hailing over the country. The relationship between the country's people and the monarchy is seen as one sided and with no clear benefits for Jamaica. One user on social media pointed to the fact that "Jamaicans still need passports to travel to Britain" and the deportation horrors of the Windrush generation.Jamaica is one of 15 countries of which Queen Elizabeth, who recently celebrated her 70th year on the throne, is head of state. Its pursuit to break from the montachy would follow Barbados which, just 4 months ago, declared itself a republic at a November ceremony attended by William's father, Prince Charles.

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