From now on, Barbados no longer recognizes Queen Elizabeth II as Head of State, after four centuries of subjection. As AFP points out, the island had already been independent from the United Kingdom since 1966. Elected by indirect universal suffrage in October, Sandra Mason (who until then was Governor General of the country) was sworn in at midnight on Monday evening, during the ‘an official ceremony marked by the replacement of the queen’s standard by the presidential flag. Barbados remains a member of the Commonwealth organization.
A little nap and a new controversy
This trip comes just as Prince Charles is making the front page of tabloids across the Channel. In a new book dedicated to the royal family, published this Tuesday and titled Brothers And Wives: Inside The Private Lives of William, Kate, Harry and Meghan, the American journalist Christopher Andersen affirms that Prince Charles is the member of the Firm who had expressed a question about the skin color of Archie (his grandson), before his birth in May 2019. Note – strongly denied by Clarence House since – reported in March 2021 by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle during their truth interview on American television.
Note that the issues of British influence and racism were decisive in Barbados’ decision to become a republic, the island still being marked by the legacy of several centuries of slavery …