KINGSTON, Jamaica – The University of the West Indies (UWI) says as an activist institution, it will continue its championing of reparatory justice and the advocacy, consciousness-raising and support for the CARICOM Reparations Commission’s Ten Point Plan.
Laura Trevelyan (far right) and members of her family sign a formal apology to begin righting the wrongs of their ancestors who owned more than 1,000 slaves in the 19th Century. (UWI) photo)In a statement regarding the apology from the Trevelyan family made late last month, the UWI said the first point in the Caribbean-led reparatory justice program calls for ‘formal and sincere apology’ as a precondition of healing for descendants of enslaved peoples.
The plan is jointly championed by the UWI and CARICOM and the statement said that the apology made during a during a forum co-hosted by the Grenada National Reparations Committee (GNRC) and regional university “shows the successful application of this framework, which has come to be known as the “Ten Point Plan”
UWI Vice Chancellor and chairman of the Caribbean Reparations Commission (CRC), Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, said the Trevelyans delivered a public apology and an initial £100,000 (One GBP=US$1.20 cents) to begin righting the wrongs of their ancestors who owned more than 1,000 slaves in the 19th Century.
Accompanied by a group of seven of her relatives, British-American BBC anchor/correspondent, Laura Trevelyan read an apology, signed by 104 of the descendants of the part owners of six plantations in Grenada.
The Trevelyans in their collaborative statement acknowledged slavery as “a crime against humanity,” noting also “its damaging effect continues to present day.
“We repudiate our ancestors’ involvement in it, and urge the British government to enter into meaningful negotiations with the governments of the Caribbean in order to make appropriate reparations through CARICOM and bodies such as the Grenada National Reparations Committee,” said family spokespersons.
Sir Hilary, who brokered and guided conversations with the Trevelyans and the Grenada government affirmed the transformative significance of the family’s initiative.
“These are developments that are transforming the world. These are developments that require courage and commitment to look into your history, your past and to recognize that a crime has been committed. A crime that has led to your own enrichment and privilege and to be able to say this was wrong. It was inhumane.”
“The reparations movement is a call for partnership. It’s a call for diminishing the debt owed to the people of this region. And it’s a call to have a shared vision for the future. We’re not calling for racial strife. We’re not calling for international conflict. We believe reparations is the key for a win-win strategy for both sides of this conversation.”
The statement said that Laura Trevelyan’s personal contribution of £100,000 will be used to establish an education fund for The UWI Open Campus, with details of the fund to be determined by the GNRC in collaboration with the UWI and the Grenada government.
Other Trevelyan family members have also made commitments towards bursaries for The UWI Open Campus, Grenada, the Grenada Education and Development Program, while others have offered their time to ongoing projects in Grenada, the statement added.
