Jamaica urged to complete its decolonization process
Many Jamaicans are calling for their country to remove King Charles as head of state, but a bill presented by the government to achieve this has frustrated some critics of the monarchy. They argue that the change should go further to sever colonial ties.
Jamaica gained independence in 1962 but — like 13 other former British colonies including Canada and Australia — it still retains the British monarch as its head of state.
Public opinion on the Caribbean island of nearly 3 million people has been shifting for years, and in December the government of Prime Minister Andrew Holness presented a bill to remove King Charles.
Britain has so far rejected calls for reparations. On the issue of removing the monarchy as head of state, Buckingham Palace usually says such matters are for the local people and politicians to decide. On a visit to the Bahamas in 2022, Prince William — who is now heir to the throne — said he supports and respects any decision Caribbean nations make about their future.
Longstanding calls by some Jamaicans to abolish the monarchy picked up steam after Barbados, another former colony in the Caribbean, removed the late Queen Elizabeth as head of state in 2021. Holness told Prince William during a visit by the royal in 2022 that his country wanted to be “independent”.
A survey by pollster Don Anderson in 2022 showed 56% of people in Jamaica wanted the monarch removed, up from 40% a decade earlier.
Similar news
