It’s been more than a week since the Grenada National Reparations Committee (GNRC) wrote a letter to Governor-General Dame Cécile La Grenade, “seeking an audience with the Earl and Countess of Wessex”, who were scheduled to visit Grenada next Tuesday, 26 April.
The visit, however, is reported to have been cancelled.
GNRC officials said they are yet to receive a response to their letter in which the committee stated that its mandate is “to advocate for the attainment of reparatory justice.” The government-endorsed GNRC was established as part of a decision of the Caribbean Community (Caricom) calling for the setting up of a regional Commission for Reparations.
GNRC “would like to engage the royal couple for a meeting to outline the reasons as to why Great Britain should be held accountable for the crimes against humanity that occurred against the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, and against the Africans during the slave trade and slavery and the wanton exploitation of the Caribbean islands during colonisation,” the committee told the Governor-General in its letter signed by chairman Arley Gill, who also is Grenada’s Caricom ambassador.
“We will welcome the opportunity to provide them with some literature on the topic, inclusive of the Caricom 10-point plan and the recently published book by Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, How Britain Underdeveloped the Caribbean: A Reparation Response to Europe’s Legacy of Plunder and Poverty.”
However, British media are reporting that Prince Edward — the youngest son of Queen Elizabeth — and his wife Sophie, have scratched Grenada as a stop on a 6-day trip to the Caribbean. The two still are due to visit St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Antigua and Barbuda.
Grenada “was removed from the itinerary on Thursday, though no official explanation for the change was given by Buckingham Palace,” the UK-based Independent reported.
“The decision was made following consultation with the government of Grenada and on the advice of the governor-general. The changed plans come days after fresh details emerged regarding Britain’s role in the enslavement of Black people in its former colony.”
The results of an investigation into the Bank of England (BOE) recently revealed that the bank, which has been owned and controlled by the British government since 1946, owned 2 plantations in Grenada in the 1770s. Almost 600 Africans were enslaved on the Grenada plantations.
“Since the bank has been owned by Her Majesty’s government since 1946 and they exploited enslaved Africans and profited from free plantation labour, and exploited profits from the land and labour, it’s a conversation long overdue that we need to have with the Queen of England,” Gill said Thursday.
Gill and the GNRC, in the aftermath of last week’s revelation of BOE’s slave ownership in Grenada, issued a statement saying they were “appalled, but not surprised” by the discovery.
“The exploitation of Grenada as a colony of Great Britain and its institutions,” GNRC said, “should intensify our urgent call-to-action to every Grenadian to join the fight for reparations and reparatory justice for the descendants of enslaved people here in Grenada.”
According to the GNRC, “the time has come for the British government and the descendants of British elites who beneffited from the enslavement of our ancestors to own up to this heinous crime against humanity — and do the right thing”.
In addition to seeking a meeting with Edward and Sophie, it’s reported that the GNRC was mobilising to stage public protests during their visit to Grenada. Protests are likely in St Lucia, St Vincent and Antigua, where there also are local reparations committees.
“In consultation with the government of Grenada and on the advice of the Governor-General,” the Independent said, “the Earl and Countess of Wessex’s visit to Grenada has been postponed, it is understood; though, they hope to visit at a later date.”
A Caribbean visit last month by Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton was met with protests in Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas.
GNRC
How, and why are so many people commenting on this forum, caping for the British Royals with this completely asinine view that they are not responsible for what’s happening to our countries now? ALL of the European countries that participated in the enslavement of African peoples need to be held accountable, with reparations being a valid form of restitution. Not enough people in formerly colonized countries are EDUCATED enough on the topic to truly understand the full scope of Slavery and Colonization. Western Europe was mad rich off of the backs of enslaved peoples in the New World.
There are businesses (and families) that exist in contemporary times that have been financially propped up by slavery. Most of the Caribbean countries that exist today, are in the financial situations they’re in, due to the manipulations of their former colonizers. I wish folks would stop thinking it’s just a matter of being “so long ago” and understand where their wealth and the modern benefits of said wealth came from. The world is finally reckoning with Europe and it’s global avarice. Building roads, bridges and infrastructure, does not excuse nor validate the murder and dehumanizing of others. Let them face the facts! Time to stop worshiping the image of Europeans and their structures!
I think the UK should definitely invest in its former Caribbean colonies in order to level the playing field for the legacy slavery left behind. But I think it’s wrong to demand they accept responsibility for crimes they themselves didn’t commit, crimes that were committed 200 years ago. They should, out of a sense of duty, moral responsibility for the past and brotherhood aid and invest here, but demanding they apologise and accept responsibility for things they didn’t do just sits wrong with me. Calling it “reparations” is tantamount to demanding they accept responsibility and guilt, and it just makes it much less likely to ever actually happen. If we keep demanding an apology and calling it “reparations” we’ll never get anywhere nor get anything.
Wholly agree with this sentiment. Given the timing with elections, too, it seems completely disingenuous
Absolutely, this entire situation smells of political opportunism by Dodgy Doc and the NNP.
And not enough people in Grenada are educated enough to understand that Britain will never pay reparations for slavery. So Arley would be better employed attracting British visitors (and consequently their money) rather than mouthing off and stopping them coming…
Just saying…..
That’s sorted that out then. Royal visit binned. Why on earth would we want British people visiting Grenada anyway? We managed very well in lockdown without them. Nice one Arley….
Now we just got to get rid of the Yanks and Canadians.
Come on Arley, get to it…
What a absolute disgrace. This smells like Dodgy Doc’s work from a mile away. The royals of today have no responsibility for slavery, and our politicians are just trying to distract us from them looting our country by trying to blame crimes of the past, who’s perpetrators are long dead.
Arley Gill’s insistence on calling Queen Elizabeth “Queen of England” is frankly insulting to our status as an independent state. In all Grenadian matters she is Queen of GRENADA. Our monarchy and that of Britain are completely different, just held by the same person. Just because Gill is ambassador to CARICOM and chairman of GNRC doesn’t mean the GRNC suddenly controls CARICOM now does it?
I’m greatly disappointed by this. I take pride in our status as a Commonwealth realm, in the fact we have a head of state independent of our thieving politicians of both NNP and NDC. Isn’t it funny how pretty much nowhere, from Lance Aux Epines to Petit Anse, in neither Petit Martinique or on Carriacou, is there any talk of a republic or hatred for the royals among us common people, but when you get to Mount Wheldale and the snakes in parliament suddenly the idea gets a lot of traction.
The French wipe out Grenada’s indigenous, introduce slavery, and willingly give up Grenada several times in order to keep Martinique. Why we focusing on Britain again? True, slavery skyrocketed under them — we can’t forgive that. But they also ended the slave trade and slavery itself (for much of the world). They then pumped tons of cash into the colony, building roads, bridges, buildings, harbors. The best infrastructure we ever had. And then in 1976, the Queen gave it all away — and all that land — for free, to the people.
The blame for our current problems is on our current leaders, not ancient history.
1974, my bad
I wish history was that simple. Did they pay the slaves a salary to build the infrastructure, did not hey pay us compensation for loss of life’s over the 500 yrs to help reduce the impact of the mental scars that are generational. Did they compensated the slave Owners for loss of income and property including some of my ancestors. Unfortunately the dubious laws, monetary system and education are set to sure Europe benefits from the so called Colonial Master. And it was not the french that reduced the indigenous natives of the Caribbean islands from approx 5 million to a few hundred it was the Spanish. All European (named after a black queen as is Scotland and California) countries are and continue to benefit from our labour.
Antiquarian, you have forgotten an important fact. Do some research.
1.Find out the sum of money that was paid out (at the time of Emancipation) as compensation to the British men who enslaved the African people in the British WI.
2.Find out what they did with this this money.
3.Ask yourself, what did the former enslaved people get?
4.Did the British really end the slave Trade?
5.Was it done without great fight and struggle?
slavery cover food and housing — better than Imani salary, we? (that’s a joke… sort of)
The Spanish didn’t bring all them slaves alone, though — they enslaved Amerindindians and then started on Africans, but the Spanish went bankrupt. The British aced that test, partly because the system had been figuring out by then (including king sugar). No more of this indigo or small coffee plots the French doing. Sugar. All the way. A few black people did it, too.
Yes, they paid millions in compensation to owners — that was the only way to end the system. You want it to end or not? And it wasn’t because of slave revolts — it was because of abolitionists and the invention of beet sugar. White guilt and economics. That’s why slavery ended. It’s cheaper to have wage-slaves than actual slaves.
And it was a REALLY long time ago, yo– nobody grandparents knew slaves. I’m sorry, that’s bullsh*t. We talking ten generations, minimum.
But we brokes, though, and other countries think reparations are a money-maker. And Grenada great at begging, we. That’s all this country ever know how to do.
So 184 years after slavery and we still vagrants. That’s not Britain’s fault. They not telling Keith to take it all for heself. I’m sorry, but we are not going anywhere until we own up to our own faults. Now. In this election. Don’t let emotional tings distract you. Vote these evil people out, and then we have a leg to stand on.
You truly are stupid people sometimes. You do NOT get to ask for reparations by protesting and treating them badly. These persons are NOT the persons responsible for the slave trade in Grenada.
They are much more effective ways if putting your case forward to Prince Edward and the rest of the Royals. Disrespect and harassment are not a means to an end.
They run away from their responsibilities