The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's week-long Platinum Jubilee tour at the Caribbean got off to a bumpy start after the royal couple was greeted with a protest over "colonialism".

Prince William and Kate Middleton kicked off their eagerly-awaited diplomatic tour to the Carribean with their arrival in Belize on Saturday, March 19.



Despite their flight arriving 30 minutes late, the Cambridges appeared to be poised and in good spirits.

Awaiting them on the tarmac was Governor-General Froyla Tzalam, who gave a warm welcome to the royal couple.

They were later joined by Belizean Prime Minister Johnny Briceno.


The trip was said to be Prince William and Kate Middleton's first overseas mission since the start of the pandemic, where they are also expected to visit Jamaica and the Bahamas.

It was also said that the trip was the monarchy's charm offensive to its Caribbean colonies, where the Cambridges have a delicate mission to emphasise the Royal Family’s long and close links with the region.

The royals' spokesman said that the three countries that William and Kate are visiting are the territories that "Her Majesty has an extremely warm relationship with".

Barbados, a former British colony in the region, recently formally removed Queen Elizabeth as the country's head of state, prompting Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness to release a statement that his country is also planning to follow suit.

This means that the trip is delicate for the Cambridges as they try to highlight the continuing relevance of the relationship of the UK to the aforementioned countries.


William and Kate were also due to travel to Indian Creek, a village that is home to fewer than 1,000 Belizeans.

However, the royal couple was greeted with a protest from Indian Creek residents after learning of their interest to visit the place.

It should be noted that Prince William is a patron of the conservation charity, Flora and Fauna International (FFI), with which the village has an ongoing conflict due to the adjoining, contested property that the organisation owns.

The villagers are involved in a highly emotional fight against the state and FFI — which works to protect ecosystems worldwide — over the rights to lands lost in the colonial era.

It was said that the Q'eqchi Maya people were not consulted about the Cambridge’s visit, urging them to hold a community meeting which resulted in the protest.

Indian Creek village chairman Sebastian Shol said: "We don't want them to land on our land, that's the message that we want to send. They could land anywhere but not on our land."

The village chairman also commented on how the state handled the visit, labelling it as an "issue of colonialism".



"For us it really hits right at home because of the treatment. The organiser said we had to let them use the football field and that people were coming to our village and it had to look good," he said.

"But they didn't want to divulge who. Eventually somebody said it was Prince William coming to our village. That's where the first issue arose. These are high-profile people, we respect them, but they also have to be giving respect to the community leaders. Giving community leaders commands did not sit well with the community."

The Cambridges' visit to the village has since been scrapped.

Additionally, the villagers, who were not allowed by the police to conduct their protest, did a mock demonstration on Saturday, carrying banners reading "Prince William leave our land" and "Colonial legacy of theft continues with Prince and FFI".


Dionisio reiterated that while the villagers primary conflict is with FFI, they believe that William also has to take responsibility as one of its patrons.

Kensington Palace has not given any comment on the matter.

In a statement to the Daily Mail, the Government of Belize said: "Indian Creek was one of several sites being considered."

"Due to issues in the village, the Government of Belize activated its contingency planning and another venue has been selected to showcase Maya family entrepreneurship in the cacao industry."

Meanwhile, an FFI spokesperson confirmed the conflict with the Indian Creek villagers, saying that the organisation “secured the land for the benefits of conservation, local communities and as a national asset for Belize as a whole”.

“FFI will conserve and protect the extraordinary wildlife of Boden Creek, while supporting the livelihoods and traditional rights of local people,” the spokesperson said.

“Nature protection has to go hand in hand with people's right to secure their livelihoods and to preserve their traditional and human rights.”

Prince William and Kate Middleton will be visiting Jamaica and the Bahamas in the coming days.