King Charles to Address Slavery on Caribbean Tour as UK Rules Out Reparations
King Charles III is expected to speak about the slave trade during his Caribbean tour later this month but will not issue a formal apology, according to Reuters. The British government has also reiterated that it will not pay reparations for slavery.
The King's itinerary includes the Bahamas on 27–29 October and Guyana on 29–30 October, followed by the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda on 1–4 November. Across the Caribbean, calls for an apology and reparations over Britain's colonial-era slave trade have grown in recent years, with governments and civil-society groups pressing London to confront the legacy.
Meanwhile, Jamaica's culture minister Olivia Grange delivered a petition in London last month asking the Privy Council to assess the legality of slavery under English common law and international law. The King has agreed to the request and referred it on.
The Foreign Office said the government's position is unchanged: no reparations will be paid. The Palace says the King will approach the sensitive subject through listening and dialogue during the visit. Charles has previously described the history of the slave trade as appalling, but has stopped short of a formal apology on Britain's behalf.
Source: Reuters reporting, carried by the Daily Mail, the Daily Caller and others.
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Photo: 查尔斯三世国王（2025年摄于加拿大渥太华），Hayden Soloviev 摄，CC BY 4.0（Wikimedia Commons）
