Caribbean calls for return of BVI – and for King Charles to back decolonisation

The Caricom Reparations Commission brought its decolonisation fight directly to London this week, meeting with British parliamentarians and Church of England clergy during a four-day official visit — its second such trip since November. 

At a Tuesday briefing, commission chair Sir Hilary Beckles declared the Caribbean "the most colonised part of the world," while Barbados' Ambassador to Caricom, David Comissiong, confirmed that decolonisation has been formally inserted into the commission's newly launched reparatory justice manifesto as a core demand. 

The commission called specifically for the return of the British Virgin Islands and for King Charles to publicly commit to decolonising Britain's remaining Caribbean territories.

Those territories — Anguilla, Bermuda, the BVI, the Cayman Islands, Montserrat and the Turks and Caicos — hold internal self-governance but remain subject to UK-appointed governors controlling defence, international affairs and key legal matters. 

The BVI, listed as a Non-Self-Governing Territory by the UN since 1946, is now at the centre of accelerating decolonisation proceedings. The UN Special Committee on Decolonization (C-24) has adopted a draft resolution — following a 2024 visiting mission to the territory — reaffirming the BVI's right to self-determination, for consideration at the UN General Assembly's 80th Session. 

BVI Premier Natalio Wheatley has announced plans for a Decolonisation Commission and constitutional negotiations with the UK starting in July, with a referendum on full decolonisation targeted for 2031. 

Meanwhile, Jamaica's government has tabled a bill to remove King Charles as head of state, requiring parliamentary passage and a national referendum to take effect.

• Caricom Reparations Commission held a four-day official visit to the UK — its second since November — meeting parliamentarians and Church of England clergy • Commission chair Sir Hilary Beckles called the Caribbean 'the most colonised part of the world' • Decolonisation formally inserted into the Caricom reparations manifesto as a core demand • Commission called specifically for the return of the BVI to its people and for King Charles to commit to decolonisation • Six British Caribbean territories retain UK-appointed governors controlling defence, international affairs and key legal matters • The BVI has been on the UN's Non-Self-Governing Territories list since 1946 • The UN C-24 adopted a draft resolution on BVI decolonisation following a 2024 visiting mission, for consideration at the 80th UN General Assembly session • BVI Premier Wheatley announced a Decolonisation Commission and constitutional talks with the UK beginning July, with a referendum targeted for 2031 • Jamaica's government has tabled a bill to remove King Charles as head of state, subject to parliamentary vote and national referendum

The convergence of Caricom's reparations push, active UN decolonisation proceedings for the BVI, and Jamaica's republican bill marks a structurally significant moment for British Caribbean relations. 

With King Charles scheduled to keynote the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in Antigua and Barbuda in November, the region has an unusually high-profile platform to press these demands before a global audience. 

The BVI's path — a UN-backed referendum potentially by 2031, constitutional reform, and a new Decolonisation Commission — could set a template for other British Overseas Territories.

"The British Virgin Islands is one of 17 remaining Non-Self-Governing Territories under the UN Special Committee on Decolonization's mandate, with the UN targeting the complete eradication of colonialism by 2030."

— United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization / BVI Government

The Caribbean has been here before — calling on London to loosen its grip — but something feels different this time. The Caricom Reparations Commission's second trip to the UK since November signals a shift from moral argument to political pressure, with decolonisation now formally embedded in its reparatory justice manifesto as a non-negotiable demand.

The numbers tell their own story. Some 20 Caribbean territories remain under European or US control. Six British Overseas Territories — Anguilla, Bermuda, the BVI, the Cayman Islands, Montserrat and the Turks and Caicos — retain UK-appointed governors with authority over defence, international affairs and key legal matters. The BVI has been on the UN's Non-Self-Governing Territories list since 1946 — nearly eight decades.

Now, multiple tracks are converging simultaneously: the UN C-24's draft resolution on BVI self-determination, Premier Wheatley's announced Decolonisation Commission and constitutional talks set for July, a referendum targeted for 2031, and Jamaica's tabled bill to remove King Charles as head of state. With the King himself due to keynote CHOGM in Antigua and Barbuda in November, the region has rarely had a more pointed moment to demand answers.

Decolonisation and reparations are inseparable — sovereignty must come first: The commission argues that around 20 Caribbean territories remain under European or US control, making the region 'the most colonised part of the world.' Decolonisation has been inserted into the updated Caricom reparations manifesto as a core demand, with Comissiong stating that recovery of national sovereignty is the first step of any meaningful reparatory justice.

Gradual, consensual self-determination — with public education before referendum: Wheatley supports a phased approach: establishing a public Decolonisation Commission, pursuing constitutional negotiations with the UK for greater internal autonomy, and holding a referendum by 2031 on the three UN-sanctioned options — integration, free association or independence. He stresses this is 'the people's constitution,' requiring broad public engagement before any final status decision.

Full decolonisation — not piecemeal reform — is the only credible path: Opposition critics of Jamaica's republican bill argue that removing the monarch while retaining the UK-based Privy Council as the apex court is contradictory and incomplete. PNP leader Mark Golding has called for 'full decolonisation — not piecemeal or partial or phased,' reflecting a harder regional position that cosmetic constitutional changes fall short of genuine sovereignty.

"The time has come to let the people go, to begin the decolonisation process … to break the chains of imperial governance. And to say, to those subjects: 'We accept responsibility for 300 years of wealth extraction, human degradation, and future moral order.'"

— David Comissiong, Barbados' Ambassador to Caricom, via The Guardian / Caribbean calls for return of British Virgin Islands