Jamaica’s government announced on Saturday that a constitutional reform committee had agreed to transform the country into a republic, severing ties with the British monarchy and putting it to a referendum.
“Once the constitutional monarchy is abolished from our system of government, it will be replaced by the Republic of Jamaica,” the Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs said in a statement on the consensus reached at the commission. Five meetings since formation.
Marilyn Malahu Forte also noted that the positions of President of the Republic of Jamaica and Head of Government of the country are expected to be established.
Regarding the functioning of the commission, the official added, “decisions are taken by consensus” and “all matters are widely discussed, the views of the public domain, experience and where we want to come”.
Jamaica began the process of becoming a republic in early March.
Malahu Forte told Parliament that Jamaica needs a referendum to remove the British monarch as head of state, a process that must involve political cooperation.
The government of Jamaica, which gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1962, plans to hold a referendum on establishing a republic early next year.
Following the example of Barbados, which took this decision in November 2021, many former British colonies in the Caribbean have expressed their desire to cease being constitutional monarchies and become republics.