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Barbados has announced its intention to remove Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II as head of state and become a republic in November next year, as the Caribbean island nation seeks to move beyond its colonial past.
The decision was formalized in the so-called Throne Speech, delivered on behalf of Prime Minister Mia Mottley by the island’s Governor General, Sandra Mason, on the occasion of the state opening of parliament yesterday.
More than half a century after gaining independence from Great Britain, “the time has come to completely put our colonial past behind us,” said Ms Mason.
She said: “Barbadians want a Barbadian Head of State.
“This is the ultimate statement of confidence in who we are and what we are capable of achieving.”
Ms Mason said that “Barbados will take the next logical step towards full sovereignty and will become a Republic by the time we celebrate our 55th anniversary of independence,” to be celebrated on November 30, 2021.
When asked about the speech, a Buckingham Palace spokesman said: “This is a matter for the government and people of Barbados.”
Queen Elizabeth is the head of state of the United Kingdom and 15 other countries previously ruled by Great Britain, where she is represented by the Governor General.
They are Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.
Many Barbadians have called for the removal of queen status in the past, due to their persistent imperialist associations, and several of the island’s leaders have advocated becoming a republic.
A government-appointed commission concluded in 1998 that Barbados should become a republic with a non-executive president as head of state to replace the queen, but the recommendation was not followed.
Ms Mason quoted a warning from the country’s first prime minister, Errol Walton Barrow, who had warned against “loitering in colonial facilities,” saying, “That warning is as relevant today as it was in 1966.”
“Having achieved independence more than half a century ago, our country cannot have any doubts about its capacity for self-government,” he said.
Several nations have eliminated the queen’s status as head of state since gaining independence, while remaining part of the 54-member Commonwealth, with Mauritius the last to become a republic, in 1992.
During the reign of Queen Elizabeth, eight referendums have been held to become a republic, of which three were approved: Ghana (1960), South Africa (1960) and Gambia (1970).
Barbados is sometimes called “Little England” for its loyalty to British customs.
The Barbados move comes as the historic role of the British empire comes under new scrutiny, as part of a global settling of scores on race relations and the colonial past fueled by massive protests against racism in the United States.
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