Scores of Jamaicans today (March 22) descended on the British High Commission in New Kingston, protesting the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge over the Royal Family’s alleged refusal to acknowledge profiting from the transatlantic slave trade. 

Professor Rosalea Hamilton, founding director of the Institute of Law and Economics (ILE) and member of the Advocates Network, told Our Today that the protest is a ‘wake-up call’ for the Royal Family. 

The Cambridges are due to arrive in Kingston this afternoon, after which the Royal couple would spend two days on the island for the second leg of their Caribbean tour to Belize, Jamaica and The Bahamas.

A stern Hamilton, on the curb of Trafalgar Road’s western flank in St Andrew, said the time for pomp and pageantry is over. 

According to her, and many protesting outside the British High Commission, Jamaica’s problems were created during its centuries-long colonial ties and Britain must face the music over the country’s repeated exploitation with actionable recognition and remorse.

“We’re here because we want to bring attention to what has happened in the past and the link between the historical wrongs and the current problems that Jamaica has today,” Hamilton told Our Today.

“We want to use this occasion to remind the British monarchy and the British people that we have not forgotten and that we need a formal apology and we need reparations,” she explained.

Several organisations, including the United Independents’ Congress (UIC), Stand Up For Jamaica, the Marcus Garvey-founded Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) and members of the Rastafarian Community joined in the demonstration, which grew in size as the minutes progressed.

Continuing, Hamilton told Our Today that, in the eyes of Advocates Network, for Prince William and his wife, Kate, to come to Jamaica in celebration of Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee without any apology for slavery is a slap in the face.

While reparations would go a long way in healing the gaping wound of Jamaica’s past trauma, Hamilton contended that the contentious topic, which many British leaders shy away from confronting, is not just about money.

“We think that there are inadequate changes that should be made in order to come to grips with some of our issues. One big example is, of course, our education system. There are much more changes that need to be made,” said Hamilton.

“Reparations is not simply money, it’s about alternative institutions that can truly represent who we are [as a people], memorialise the history as a learning experience and prepare us better for the future,” she asserted further.

Among the arguments, Advocates Network is suggesting that reparations go towards technological advancement and psychosocial interventions, as Hamilton told Our Today that the scars of slavery have still not yet healed for many Jamaicans, even 60 years after achieving Independence.

“There’s still psychological trauma and all those arrangements are embodied in the 10-point plan by CARICOM and that has been supported by the Government of Jamaica and, of course, governments across the Caribbean,” mused Hamilton.

The Advocates Network has not forgotten former British Prime Minister David Cameron’s presentation to Jamaica’s Parliament during his official September 2015 visit, with Hamilton adding that his utterances are a big contributor to renewed demands for an apology from Britain. 

“We felt disrespected then and still now. [Cameron] is one of the reasons for the apology. You don’t come to our Parliament and tell us to ‘move on’. For some people that might have been acceptable, for some of us in Jamaica it is not. And for those of us who find that unacceptable, we made our voice heard then and we’re making a louder voice heard now,” Hamilton told Our Today.

“As long as this continues, this voice will [also] continue. We think Jamaica is the best country in the world, [it has] the greatest potential for greatness and we think these institutional arrangements—led by people who don’t see anything fundamentally wrong with the past and are not willing to break with the past— perpetuate these institutions, norms and habits; to continue to oppress our people,” she added.

Many Jamaicans struggle with squatting and will unfortunately never own a home in their lifetime, argued Hamilton. She also bemoaned the country’s illiteracy problem, which she cites as a social construct of Britain’s colonial ‘heritage’ to Jamaica.

“Many of us are landless, we’re squatters. Many are still illiterate; over 60 per cent of our students are coming out of schools hardly able to read and write and it continues. Time come!” declared Hamilton.

What’s more, as news emerges of the Government’s ‘waiting game’ with the visiting Royals, Hamilton, speaking for the Advocates Network, said it shouldn’t have taken this long for the political class to start Jamaica’s transition to republic status.

“I can’t speak for the Government but what we know is that this Government promised to lead this country to a republic. It’s there in their manifesto and it’s not the first time we were promised—previous JLP and PNP administrations have promised that,” said Hamilton.

“Time come! It’s enough writing in manifestos and documents; we’re way past that now. We need to deal with it and it’s not simply removing the Queen as head of state,” she continued.

“It’s about redefining what a modern republic means in a modern world where there are significant challenges to compete and make our way on terms that are self-respecting and provides the kinds of dignity we all deserve,” the Advocate Network member told Our Today.

Hamilton is also one of the 100 signatories to the Advocate Network’s open letter to the visiting British royals.