KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – The University of the West Indies (UWI) says as an activist institution. It will continue championing reparatory justice and the advocacy, consciousness-raising, and support for the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Reparations Commission’s Ten Point Plan.
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 a ‘formal and sincere apology’ as a precondition of healing for descendants of enslaved peoples.
The UWI and CARICOM jointly champion the plan, and the statement said that the apology made 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 enslaved people 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 Trevelyan, in their joint statement, acknowledged slavery as “a crime against humanity,” also noting “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 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 developments require courage and commitment to look into your history and your past and recognize that a crime has been committed. A crime that has led to your 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 are the key to a win-win strategy for both sides of this conversation.”
The statement said that Laura Trevelyan’s 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 the Grenada government.
Other Trevelyan family members have also made commitments towards bursaries for The UWI Open Campus, Grenada, and the Grenada Education and Development Programme, while others have offered their time to ongoing projects in Grenada, the statement added.
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