The weekly tour, which ended last weekend, saw Prince William and Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, visit Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas in a bid to strengthen ties between Britain and Britain. Instead, the trip sparked protests and public demands for compensation for slavery, and he saw unexpected news from Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness that his country intended to become fully independent. In this way, Jamaica would become the second Caribbean country to sever ties with Queen Elizabeth in recent years – following the example of the Barbados, who did so in 2021. People seeking compensation for slavery are protesting outside the UK High Commissioner’s entrance last week during a visit by Prince William and Kate to Kingston, Jamaica. (Ricardo Makyn / AFP / Getty Images)
However, more countries in the region seem to be considering the possibility. Gaston Browne, the prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda, told the Jamaica Gleaner newspaper last week that he believed “every country in the Commonwealth of Caribbean aspires to become a democracy.” The question of the future of the monarchy is also on the minds of many Canadians – including those who are already convinced that it is time to move in a new direction. “Jamaica and Barbados are ahead of Canada,” Kulpreet Singh wrote on Twitter, reacting from Vancouver to the Jamaican headlines. “Come to Canada. Eat the monarchy.”

“Cannot continue”

Selwyn Pieters, a Toronto lawyer and civil rights activist, said he saw no reason for the monarchy to remain in Canada. “[Canada] “It does not need a monarchy to oversee it,” he said in a telephone interview last week. CLOCKS Royal visit sparks misery in Manitoba’s Jamaican diaspora:

The visit of the Royalists has sparked protests in the country

The royal family’s visit to Jamaica this week sparked protests in the country and unrest here in Canada among members of the Jamaican diaspora in Manitoba. 2:21
A recent poll by Research Co. Vancouver-based shows that many Canadians would agree. Nearly half of those polled said they wanted the country to have an elected head of state, according to an online poll of 1,000 adults conducted over a three-day period in February. Mario Canseco, president of Research Co., said that percentage – now “a mustache away from 50 percent” – was rising in opinion polls in recent years. “It’s the highest we’ve ever had,” Canseco said in a previous poll. An additional 18 percent of those polled said they did not prefer Canada to remain a constitutional monarchy. Only 21 percent of those polled said they would prefer Canada to remain a monarchy. The CBC cannot accurately calculate an error margin for online surveys. A probabilistic sample of the same magnitude would yield an error margin of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times 20. A woman appears to be holding a protest sign in Nassau, Bahamas, last Friday. (Toby Melville / Getty Images)
A Canadian Heritage spokesman told CBC News that “the Crown in Canada contributes to a sense of unity, stability and pride among Canadians. As a constitutional monarch, the Queen is the head of state of Canada and an essential part of Canada’s government . “ The spokesman further added that “no changes are being considered to the Crown’s role in Canada.”
But Ashok Charles, the executive director of Republic Now, a pro-democracy group in Canada, said he believed that day would come. “I find it disgusting that we keep the remnants of the monarchy in the 21st century,” said Charles. “It can not continue.”

A pandemic can be a factor

Kanseko said there were fewer royal visits during the pandemic and he believes that is a factor in what is being reflected in the polls. “They always get a chance to say that the monarchy was popular because there are a lot of people in line to shake their hands,” he said. “But because of COVID and the lack of travel, they have not been able to establish that emotional connection with the monarchy. And I think that is also partly responsible for reducing the numbers.” There were also fewer public appearances. On Tuesday, the queen made her first major public appearance in five months at a memorial service for her husband, Prince Philip. He missed a Commonwealth Day service at Westminster Abbey earlier in the month while still leaking from COVID-19. It would be her first personal public commitment since her medical team advised her to rest after being hospitalized for unknown reasons in October. Prince William and Kate attended an event at Nassau Elementary School last Friday – the second day of a tour that saw the couple also visit Belize and Jamaica, before the final part of their tour of the Bahamas. (Toby Melville / Getty Images)
There are those in Canada who believe that moving away from the current system is not the answer. Rob Wolvin, who lives in Toronto, said he believes a constitutional monarchy provides stability that is one of its strengths as a system. But that does not mean it should remain static. “We must allow our system to change,” Wolvin said, adding that he believed that turning to a democracy did not guarantee a stronger or better democracy.

A story not so far away

While in Jamaica, Prince William spoke of the “deep sadness” he felt for the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade. The second in line for the throne said that “slavery was abhorrent and should never have happened”, although his remarks did not apologize. CLOCKS Prince William expresses “deep regret” for the slavery, but does not apologize:

Prince William does not apologize for slavery during Jamaica visit

In a speech to the Jamaicans, Prince William expressed “deep regret” over Britain’s role in the slave trade, but did not apologize. 2:02
His words were closely watched by many people, including Canada. In Winnipeg, O’Neill Reese had previously told CBC News that he believed the royal visit to Jamaica had upset people more. “If there was an apology, I really think it would definitely allow us to look at it in a fundamentally different light,” said Reese, who frequently travels to Jamaica to visit his family. “Of course, you can not change the past, but I mean, this generation will be the change.” In Toronto, Pieters said he and others were still “working out and pondering” what the prince had to say about the painful history of transatlantic slavery. Singh said he considered an apology “the minimum” necessary. “If we are talking about Prince William’s ancestors, it is not far enough that he can just say; that was something in our ancient history,” Singh said, explaining that some of his ancestors from western Punjab had been displaced by his actions. the British Empire. “It was not – it was in the 17th and 18th centuries. And so it has benefited from the legacy of this slavery.”

“It will not be so easy”

If Canada were to secede from the monarchy, it would include a change of constitution to replace the queen as head of state. To do so, it must enact Article 41 (a) of the 1982 Constitutional Law, which requires the approval of a majority of the “Senate and House of Commons and the legislature of each province.” “It’s not going to be that easy, but maybe it’s worth exploring if we continue to see it rising in the charts,” said Canseco, who intends to continue to monitor the issue in opinion polls. As difficult as this process was, Charles Now of Republic Now said he believed it was an “inevitable” step for Canada and hoped the current moment could help foster a desire for change. Chester Cooper, the Bahamas’ deputy prime minister, walks with Prince William and Kate on a sailing race on Montagu Beach in Nassau last Friday. (Chandan Khanna / AFP / Getty Images)
“We need to take more dedicated action to facilitate change,” he said. Singh said he did not expect this kind of change to happen in the short term, in part because of the extent to which Canada is immersed in its colonial traditions. “I feel we are still behind in breaking free from these shackles,” Singh said.