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Jamaican Delegation to Present Slavery Reparations Petition to King Charles in UK
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In Short: Jamaica is set to present a petition to King Charles III seeking legal guidance on slavery reparations, marking the first time a British Commonwealth state has used this legal route for reparatory justice.
A Jamaican delegation is set to present a petition to King Charles III in the United Kingdom, seeking legal guidance on slavery reparations. This marks the first time a British Commonwealth state has used this legal route for the cause of reparatory justice, according to Al Jazeera.
The delegation, led by Jamaica’s Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia Grange, will present the petition to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, the Caribbean island's highest court of appeal based in London. The petition questions the legality of slavery under English law and the UK's responsibility for reparations, according to Al Jazeera.
Grange stated that the petition will ask the king, who serves as Jamaica’s head of state, to answer three key questions regarding the transatlantic slave trade. These questions include whether the enslavement of Africans in Jamaica was legal under English common law, whether it violated international law, and whether the UK has a legal obligation to provide a remedy for the harm caused by slavery.
The Guardian reported that Grange emphasized the ongoing legacy of slavery, which continues to disadvantage former British colonies. 'Slavery’s legacy continues to deprive our country and our people,' she said, adding that Jamaica had been the first Caribbean nation to create a national reparations mechanism in 2009.
In response to Jamaica’s inquiry, Buckingham Palace acknowledged the king’s constitutional role in the petition but noted that he has no role in deciding the substance of the claim. The palace spokesperson stated, 'We understand the Jamaican government is seeking a petition to be heard before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
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- “But we still have a lot of work to do, and you can imagine if we did not have those inherited problems, the legacy that came out of slavery, how much better we would have been able to do so,” she told the Guardian.
- First announced in June last year, the petition asks the monarch to use his authority to request legal advice from the judicial committee of the London-based privy council, the final court of appeal for UK overseas territories and some Commonwealth countries.
- She said the aim was to address the enduring impacts of slavery that put countries such as Jamaica at a grave economic disadvantage and affected its ability to respond to modern-day challenges in the Caribbean, such as the climate crisis.
Sources
- The Trumpet Newspaper Nigerialink