Jamaica is understood to be mulling over plans to demand around £500,000 from Britain in slavery reparations to fund its ‘dark tourism’ heritage sector.
The Caribbean island, which is ruled by anti-royalist Prime Minister Andrew Holness, is said to be seeking funding from the UK Government and major museums to fund exhibitions about colonialism.
Jamaica, which was under British rule until 1962, may seek reparation payments of around half a million pounds for the centuries of slavery suffered.
The money would go to conserving ports, hospitals and courthouses which are linked to imperialism, The Telegraph reports.
The newspaper previously reported that Edmund Bartlett, Jamaica’s tourism minister, wanted to preserve Georgian sites such as the former homes of slave owners for ‘dark tourism’.
‘We are interested in what is called ‘dark tourism’, he said. ‘The built heritage is very, very important, because it tells a story in stone and sticks and mortar.
‘Jamaica, being a confluence of so many cultures and peoples, has a story that you need to connect with, because a little piece [of the British] is really here, a piece of your history, your past.’
King Charles III shakes hands with Prime Minister of Jamaica, Andrew Holness, in September 2022
Jamaica’s PM Mr Holness has been a long standing critic of Jamaica’s relationship with the Commonwealth and the British monarchy
Jamaica’s PM Mr Holness has been a long standing critic of Jamaica’s relationship with the Commonwealth and the British monarchy and formally announced plans for the country to become an independent republic in 2022.
Mr Holness’ grand vision is for a new Constitution of Jamaica to be enacted, which would make the country a republic without a monarchy.
Last year, the country admitted they had wanted to ditch the monarchy after the Queen died in 2022.
Mr Holness said he thought there has always been a ‘strong love and respect’ for the late Queen and the ‘appropriate time to [separate] would have been on a transition’.
‘The truth is the recent polls have shown there is a tendency towards Jamaica becoming a republic. So over time the position has evolved,’ he told the Express.
The change in the country’s constitution was hoped to have been completed by June last year but the government faced delays amid discussions over what position would represent the new head of state.
‘We would have wanted to be able to do this within a year but the process is not a linear one. So we are on the journey of public education.’
He explained then a legislation must be passed in Parliament before a referendum is sat. It is not yet confirmed when Jamaica will become a republic.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were last month branded ‘insensitive’ after posing with Mr Holness after they flew to Kingston for the premier of the new Bob Marley film One Love.
Jamaica, which was under British rule until 1962, may seek reparation payments of around half a million pounds for the centuries of slavery suffered. Pictured: Cane Cutters in Jamaica in the 1890s
Mr Holness has previously warned Harry’s brother, Prince William, and sister-in-law, Princess Kate that they would never rule the island.
Comparisons were also drawn to when the Prince and Princess of Wales visited the country themselves in March 2022.
Omid Scobie, author of Endgame, wrote on X: ‘A different vibe to the last time we saw PM Andrew Holness with members of the Royal Family…’
Mr Holness told The Gleaner: ‘I was pleased, and I was also very happy to see royals coming to participate in this major event.
‘Unsuspecting—little did I know—that I’d be drawn into some internal issues in the United Kingdom. But so it is, more publicity for Jamaica.’
Mr Holness has been vocal in his praise for the Prince William and Kate Middleton – but said they will never rule the nation.
The couple visited Jamaica and William was both praised and criticised for speaking out against Britain’s historic role in the slave trade.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were branded ‘insensitive’ last month after posing with Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness
Mr Holness has previously said he intends to ditch the monarchy
He also warned Prince William and Kate Middleton they’d never rule the island
But despite his condemnation of the ‘abhorrent’ trade in humans, abolished after 200 years by Britain in 1807, some Jamaicans do not believe he went far enough.
The heir to the throne told a dinner in Kingston: ‘I strongly agree with my father, The Prince of Wales, who said in Barbados last year that the appalling atrocity of slavery forever stains our history. I want to express my profound sorrow. Slavery was abhorrent. And it should never have happened. ‘
In an exchange that was caught on camera, Mr Holness told the royal couple that whilst Jamaicans were ‘very very happy’ to welcome them, ‘there are issues here which are as you would know unresolved.’
Charles has previously expressed his personal sorrow at the suffering caused by the slave trade.
Buckingham Palace said he wants to deepen his understanding of slavery’s impact with ‘vigour and determination’. A spokesman said: ‘This is an issue that His Majesty takes profoundly seriously.
The Prime Minister of Jamaica, Andrew Holness and his wife Juliet with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in March 2022
‘Given the complexities of the issues it is important to explore them as thoroughly as possible.’
Last August, a leading international judge claimed that Britain owed almost £19trillion in reparations for its role in the slave trade, and even that might be an ‘underestimation’.
Patrick Robinson, who sits in International Criminal Court, claimed that countries behind the centuries of atrocities were ‘obliged to pay’ and accused politicians like Rishi Sunak of burying their heads in the sand.
Critics hit back, however, with Tory former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg saying: ‘It is simply silly. We owe nothing and civilised the world by ending the slave trade.’