Photo: AARON CHOWN / AFP / Getty Images
King Charles III has acknowledged "the great suffering" caused by slavery as he began a nine-day tour of the Caribbean in the Bahamas on Tuesday (October 27). Speaking at a youth rally in Nassau, he recognized past injustices while highlighting the region's progress and future opportunities. His visit comes amid renewed calls for Britain to provide slavery reparations, with protestors demanding financial compensation and the return of artifacts.
The tour will take him to the Bahamas, Guyana, and Antigua and Barbuda, where he will attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) from November 1-4. According to Al Jazeera, the meeting is expected to include discussions about the environment and trade and development, although the question of British reparations for slavery is also likely to feature.
In Guyana, King Charles is expected to meet with President Mohamed Irfaan Ali, who has stated that while Charles recognized slavery as the "darkest days in human history" during a visit to Barbados in 2021, an apology should be his next step. "You exploited the region. You destroyed lives. You created underdevelopment," Ali said, referencing the legacy of the British Empire and the slave trade.
The visit has sparked protests, with demonstrators in the Bahamas waving placards reading "pay what you owe us." News24 reports that several former colonies have demanded the king take steps toward making amends for colonization and the transatlantic slave trade.
While Buckingham Palace has stated that the tour will focus on the present and future of each country, the issue of reparations remains a significant topic. Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, Commonwealth Secretary-General, said that reparations are "fundamentally about justice" and that the time has come to discuss them.
King Charles will also address climate change, emphasizing the threats facing low-lying islands. "In an island nation where 90 percent of the land sits below two meters, there is perhaps nowhere better than the Bahamas to understand the reality of climate change," he said.