Barbados is to remove Queen Elizabeth II as the country’s Head of State as the Caribbean island signifies their intention to become a Republic.
Dame Sandra Mason, Governor General of Barbados, announced the news in her Throne Speech on Tuesday, saying that the country will become a republic by November 2021.
Reading a speech written by Prime Minister Mia Mottley, Dame Sandra said: “The time has come to fully leave our colonial past behind. Barbadians want a Barbadian Head of State.
“This is the ultimate statement of confidence in who we are and what we are capable of achieving.
“Barbados will take the next logical step toward full sovereignty and become a Republic by the time we celebrate our 55th Anniversary of Independence.”
Barbados moves to become a Republic and remove UK Queen
“time has come to fully leave our colonial past behind. Barbadians want a Barbadian Head of State. This is the ultimate statement of confidence in who we are and what we are capable of achieving.”pic.twitter.com/wyg1F0mR4q
— ScottishPoliticsNews ??????? (@ScoPoliticsNews) September 15, 2020
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Next year marks the 55th anniversary of the country’s independence from the United Kingdom.
Despite becoming a fully independent sovereign nation in 1966, The Queen remains the country’s constitutional monarch.
The last country to remove Queen Elizabeth as their Head of State was Mauritius in 1992.
For the time being, Her Majesty remains the monarch of 16 countries including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Belize.
In the Caribbean, The Queen is Head of State in Antigua & Barbuda, the Bahamas, Jamaica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
