Belize Joins Regional Call for Reparatory Justice
Belize has joined other Caribbean countries in renewing the regional call for reparatory justice, with leaders and advocates focusing on how reparations can produce tangible benefits for present and future generations.
The Third CARICOM Regional Conference on Reparations was held in St Philip, Barbados, from September 17 to 19 under the theme “Reparatory Justice as the Coming Enlightenment.” Nuri Muhammad represented Belize’s Pro-Tem Reparations Committee at the three-day gathering.
The conference brought representatives from across the region together to discuss how CARICOM countries can strengthen their pursuit of reparations and move the regional agenda forward.
A major focus was the relaunch of CARICOM’s revised Ten-Point Plan for Reparatory Justice. The updated plan addresses areas including public health, education, debt cancellation, gender justice and monetary compensation, as well as measures aimed at addressing the lasting effects of slavery and colonialism.
The discussions come as Caribbean countries pursue both diplomatic and legal avenues on the issue. Jamaica’s recent petition to King Charles III, which was referred to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, has added a legal dimension to the wider regional debate over Britain’s role in slavery and its consequences.
The meeting followed a March 2026 United Nations General Assembly resolution that declared the trafficking and racialised chattel enslavement of Africans “the gravest crime against humanity.”