Durrant Pate/Contributor

The CARICOM Reparations Commission (CRC) is now in the United Kingdom, as part of efforts to strengthen international partnerships and advance the movement for reparatory justice.

The delegation is visiting the UK from July 13 to 16, 2026, where the team is engaged in discussions focused on public education, civil society involvement and broader support for the reparations agenda. Meetings and events will be hosted by the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, School of Advanced Study at the University of London.

The CRC delegation is led by Chairman, Professor Sir Hilary Beckles and includes Chairman of the Antigua and Barbuda Reparations Support Commission, Dorbrene O’Marde; Chairman of the Guyana Reparations Committee and Vice Chair of the CRC, Eric Phillips and Professor Verene Shepherd, Vice Chair of the CRC and Vice Chair of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

The team also includes Barbados Ambassador to CARICOM, David Comissiong and Dr Ron Daniels, Convenor of the National African Reparations Commission in the United States. The visit comes amid renewed global attention on reparations for the transatlantic slave trade and the legacy of colonialism, as CARICOM countries prepare for the 2026 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda and other international engagements.

UN resolution on enslavement of Africans 

 In March 2026, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a Ghana-led resolution declaring the transatlantic trafficking of enslaved Africans and chattel enslavement the “gravest crime against humanity.” The development was followed by Ghana’s hosting of the High-Level Consultative Conference on Reparations in Accra in June 2026. 

The conference brought together governments, international organisations, legal experts and civil society representatives to develop a common framework for advancing reparatory justice worldwide. The CARICOM Reparations Commission has also finalised and secured approval for the revised “CARICOM Ten Point Plan for Reparatory Justice: A Manifesto for the Coming Enlightenment.”

The updated plan describes reparations as a “global human rights imperative” and outlines the region’s continued push for recognition, accountability and action to address the enduring impacts of slavery and colonialism. CARICOM Heads of Government have also agreed to several initiatives aimed at advancing the region’s reparations agenda, as the commission continues efforts to build international support for its advocacy.

Jamaica plans to petition King Charles

Jamaica announced just over a week ago that it plans to formally petition King Charles III on September 6, 2026, requesting a legal review regarding slavery reparations. A dedicated delegation will travel to the United Kingdom to lodge the historic request.

Culture Minister, Babsy Grange, who announced during her Sectoral Debate in parliament, said the initiative asks the monarch to use his authority under the Judicial Committee Act of 1833 to seek guidance from the Privy Council. A dedicated delegation will travel to the United Kingdom to lodge the historic request. The initiative asks the monarch to use his authority under the Judicial Committee Act of 1833 to seek guidance from the Privy Council.