By NAN STAFF WRITER
News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Tues. April 4, 2022: A second Royal visit of the Caribbean is coming this month to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, this time its focused on four Caribbean islands where Queen Elizabeth, II is still head of state.
From April 22-28th, the lesser known Prince Edward and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, will visit Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines.
The visit comes on the heels of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Kate’s visit to Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas, last month, that was marked by protests and calls for an apology for slavery and reparative justice.
Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, is the youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.
The Queen is marking 70 years on the throne in 2022 and the royals have scheduled a series of visits to countries that recognize her as head of state. It is likely the same protests that followed William and Kate will follow Edward and Sophie.
Human Rights advocate in St. Lucia, Mary Francis, describing herself as a staunch advocate for reparations from Europe for Slavery and Native Genocide, has already called for Saint Lucia to remove Queen Elizabeth as the country’s Head of State.
“I am a staunch advocate for reparations because it is a question of justice and human rights. In slavery people were dehumanised. They were considered property and exploited economically. It has been labelled a crime against humanity,” the National Centre for Legal Aid and Human Rights coordinator told St Lucia Times.
“Therefore there must be reparations to ensure that we would be compensated for what our ancestors suffered. The development of the region was affected by slavery and exploitation so we need assistance through reparations to recover and build our economies,” the outspoken Attorney at Law expressed.
