KazPost

Kazakhstan News
Tuesday, Mar 19, 2024

Barbados to remove Queen Elizabeth as head of state and become free

Barbados has announced its intention to remove Queen Elizabeth as its head of state and become a republic. "The time has come to fully leave our colonial past behind," the Caribbean island nation's government said.

It aims to complete the process in time for the 55th anniversary of independence from Britain, in November 2021.

A speech written by Prime Minister Mia Mottley said Barbadians wanted a Barbadian head of state.

"This is the ultimate statement of confidence in who we are and what we are capable of achieving," the speech read.

Buckingham Palace said that it was a matter for the government and people of Barbados.

A source at Buckingham Palace said that the idea "was not out of the blue" and "has been mooted and publicly talked about many times", BBC royal correspondent Jonny Dymond said.

Barbados key facts:


* One of the more populous and prosperous Caribbean islands

* Gained its independence from Britain in 1966

* Queen Elizabeth remains its constitutional monarch

* Once heavily dependent on the sugar exports, its economy has diversified into tourism and finance

* Its prime minister is Mia Mottley, elected in 2018 and the first woman to hold the post

The statement was part of the Throne Speech, which outlines the government's policies and programmes ahead of the new session of parliament.
While it is read out by the governor-general, it is written by the country's prime minister.

The speech also quoted a warning from Errol Barrow, Barbados's first prime minister after it gained independence, who said that the country should not "loiter on colonial premises".


The speech was written by Prime Minister Mia Mottley


His is not the only voice in Barbados that has been suggesting a move away from the monarchy. A constitutional review commission recommended republican status for Barbados in 1998.

And Ms Mottley's predecessor in officer, Freundel Stuart, also argued for a "move from a monarchical system to a republican form of government in the very near future".

Barbados would not be the first former British colony in the Caribbean to become a republic. Guyana took that step in 1970, less than four years after gaining independence from Britain. Trinidad and Tobago followed suit in 1976 and Dominica in 1978.



It is actually quite unusual for a country to remove the Queen as its head of state. The last to do so was Mauritius in 1992. Other Caribbean countries like Dominica, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago became republics in the 1970s.

Many of the 15 countries that are currently part of the Queen's realm seem to value the relationship it provides with her and the United Kingdom.

Of course, some have talked for years of slipping the royal anchor and establishing their own heads of state. But other political objectives often get in the way.

Certainly this is not the first time that politicians in Barbados have declared their intention to become a republic.

The question is whether this decision will be matched by others. Jamaica has in the past suggested that this is a route it might follow.

What is significant is that the prime minister of Barbados cast the decision as "leaving our colonial past behind".

In the context of the Black Lives Matter movement, it will be interesting to see if this sparks wider political pressure on other Caribbean governments to go the same way.

And if this happens, and the removal of the Queen as head of state is placed on a par with, say, the removal of a statue of a slave trader, then that could pose difficult questions for both the British royal family and the Commonwealth.



Newsletter

Related Articles

KazPost
0:00
0:00
Close
It's always the people with the dirty hands pointing their fingers
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
Europe is boiling: Extreme Weather Conditions Prevail Across the Continent
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
Historic Moment: Edgars Rinkevics, EU's First Openly Gay Head of State, Takes Office as Latvia's President
An Ominous Shift in Warfare: Western Powers Risk War Crimes and Violate International Norms with Cluster Bomb Supply to Ukraine
Bye bye democracy, human rights, freedom: French Cops Can Now Secretly Activate Phone Cameras, Microphones And GPS To Spy On Citizens
The Poor Man With Money, Mark Zuckerberg, Unveils Twitter Replica with Heavy-Handed Censorship: A New Low in Innovation?
The Double-Edged Sword of AI: AI is linked to layoffs in industry that created it
US Sanctions on China's Chip Industry Backfire, Prompting Self-Inflicted Blowback
Meta Copy Twitter with New App, Threads
The New French Revolution
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Application Refiled, Naming Coinbase as ‘Surveillance-Sharing’ Partner
Corruption in the European Parliament - Business as usual
UK Crypto and Stablecoin Regulations Become Law as Royal Assent is Granted
Paris Suburb Grapples with Violence as Curfew Imposed: Saint-Denis Residents Express Dismay and Anger
A Delaware city wants to let businesses vote in its elections
Alef Aeronautics Achieves Historic Milestone with Flight Certification for World's First Flying Car
Google Blocked Access to Canadian News in Response to New Legislation
French Politicians Advocate for Pan-European Regulation on Social Media Influencers
×