King acknowledges 'suffering of the past' as Caribbean tour begins

King Charles III has begun his tour of the Caribbean by acknowledging the "great suffering of the past" as he faced calls for slavery reparations.

Speaking an event in the Bahamas celebrating local youth, the King said the country's culture was "born out of darkness", and it was "only right" to acknowledge historic injustices.

His nine-day tour will culminate in the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), where the King has confirmed leaders will discuss the region's legacy of slavery.

The visit, his first as monarch, comes in the wake of renewed calls from Caribbean nations for Britain to apologise for its role in selling enslaved people for profit.

Prior to the trip, Buckingham Palace said the King would not shy away from "colonial legacy" and the impact of the slave trade during his visit but, in line with the UK government position, he will not apologise for Britain's role in the slave trade or offer reparations.

Upon his arrival on Tuesday, the King met Governor General Dame Cynthia A. Pratt and its Prime Minister Philip Edward Davis, before speaking with members of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force as he inspected a guard of honour.

King Charles, wearing sunglasses and a grey suit, was then met with cheers as he arrived for his first engagement at a youth rally at Clifford Park - where he attended independence celebrations for the Bahamas as Prince of Wales in 1973.

The young people in the crowd had been given time off school for the event. "It's my first time seeing him in person out of TikTok so he's out there, it's cool," one student told the BBC.

A small group of protesters gathered close to the rally shouting "pay us what you owe us" and "return artefacts you've stolen."

The group of around a dozen protesters was kept outside the main venue as they called on the King to help change the UK government's position on apologising and offering reparations.

"He's a man of influence. The Crown still has influence. And if they do not do it then we will become a republic and we will turn our backs on England if you do not show respect to the former colonies," said one protester, Sharon Purcer-Cooper.

During his speech in Nassau, the King acknowledged his 50-year-long commitment to fighting climate change and highlighted the challenges faced by low-lying Caribbean islands, saying that "our world cries out for healing".

He went on to call on young people at the rally to "take up the sacred task to play your part" as "in years to come, this will be surely be the measure of every person - how they answered the call to care for planet earth - the source of our life, our prosperity and our security".

The King resumes engagements in the Bahamas on Wednesday, where he will hear how vulnerable the low lying islands of the Caribbean are to climate change.

He will also learn more about the Bahamian tradition of Junkanoo - a cultural festival and street parade.

Buckingham Palace said opportunities for the King to reflect on the legacy of the slave trade will be built into the schedule of his nine-day tour of three Caribbean countries with visits planned to memorials and other places of reflection and remembrance.

A spokesperson for the palace told the BBC that the King's programme on the tour "will primarily focus on shining a light on the many modern partnerships and opportunities for the future", specifically those which are "having a transformative effect on the region".

For the King, the spokesperson added, the "tour is both a new journey but also the continuance of a lifelong one, in which he has sought to engage, understand and educate about the most shameful aspects of our past".

Those themes will be reflected by the King through the nine-day visit, the palace said.

The visit has been planned alongside the governments of the Bahamas, Guyana and Antigua and Barbuda with an emphasis on honouring the past but also looking forward to the ambition and possibility for future generations.

The King will move to Guyana later this week where his engagements will focus on the environment and biodiversity.

He will then visit Antigua and Barbuda, where he will be joined by Queen Camilla, for the CHOGM and his keynote speech as leader of the Commonwealth.

The biennial summit will bring together leaders of 56 Commonwealth countries to address shared challenges and advance cooperation.

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