Barbados finally became free on November 30, 2021, when Queen Elizabeth II was removed as its head of state, marking the end of monarchy on the Caribbean island nation. Barbados remained a British colony for nearly four centuries ever since the English ships arrived at the Caribbean in 1625. Barbados gained independence from the United Kingdom in November 1966, centuries after the English settlers turned the island into a wealthy sugar colony thanks to the hard work of thousands of African November 30, and Sandra Mason, 72, lawyer, slaves. Since independence, the country has tried to revive its economy by moving away from agriculture to tourism and industry. The country of nearly 3 lakh people celebrated its 55th Independence Day on diplomat and the last governor-general, was sworn in as the new republic’s first president.
Prince Charles’ speech highlighted the continuing friendship of the two nations though he acknowledged the horrors of the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
While Britain casts slavery as a sin of the past, some Barbadians are calling for compensation from Britain.
Activist David Denny celebrated the creation of the republic but said he opposes the visit by Prince Charles, noting the royal family for centuries benefited from the slave trade.
“Our movement would also like the royal family to pay a reparation,” Denny said in an interview in Bridgetown.
The English initially used white British indentured servants to toil on the plantations of tobacco, cotton, indigo and sugar, but Barbados in just a few decades would become England’s first truly profitable slave society.
Barbados received 600,000 enslaved Africans between 1627 and 1833, who were put to work in the sugar plantations, earning fortunes for the English owners.
More than 10 million Africans were shackled into the Atlantic slave trade by European nations between the 15th and 19th centuries. Those who survived the often brutal voyage, ended up toiling on plantations.
“I’m overjoyed,” Ras Binghi, a Bridgetown cobbler, told Reuters ahead of the ceremony. Binghi said he would be saluting the new republic with a drink and a smoke.
Barbados will remain a republic within the Commonwealth, a grouping of 54 countries across Africa, Asia, the Americas and Europe.
Outside the lavish official ceremony, some Barbadians said they were uncertain what the transition to a republic even meant or why it mattered.
“They should leave Queen Elizabeth be – leave her as the boss. I don’t understand why we need to be a republic,” said Sean Williams, 45, standing in the shadow of an independence monument.
The last time the queen was removed as head of state was in 1992 when the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius proclaimed itself a republic.
Credit : Reuters
Picture Credit : Google
