According to government sources, Jamaica has initiated the process of replacing Queen Elizabeth II as the country’s head of state. This news comes as Prince William and Kate Middleton embark on a royal tour of the Caribbean to mark Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee.
A prominent member in Jamaica’s administration has been nominated to manage the country’s transition from a constitutional monarchy to a republic, according to The Independent.
“The government had no choice but to begin the process; the road to becoming a republic is not simple, but they have been under significant pressure to do so for a long time,” a political source told the site.
People have been urging the six other Caribbean countries to do the same after Barbados ousted the Queen as its head of state. When the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge landed in Jamaica on Tuesday for an eight-day Caribbean tour, protesters greeted them outside the British High Commission, demanding reparations and a public apology for the slave trade.
The Advocates Network, a group of Jamaican politicians, business leaders, doctors, and singers, wrote Prince William and Kate an open letter outlining the reasons why the monarchy should pay reparations. On Tuesday, the letter was delivered to the British High Commission.
Prince William and Kate Middleton had to reschedule a visit to a cocoa estate in Belize earlier on Sunday when villagers staged a protest against colonialism and the use of a local football field to park the royal couple’s helicopter.
