The Guardian· Europe
Memo to King Charles: if the Dutch king can apologise for slavery, why can’t you? | Raoul de Jong
It has been three years since Willem-Alexander said sorry, so please use your trip to the Caribbean to follow his exampleDear King Charles,You are currently on a Caribbean royal tour through the Bahamas, Guyana, and Antigua and Barbuda. I understand that during this tour you will not issue a formal apology for Britain’s role in the transatlantic slave trade, or address the role your own family pla
Published Monday, 2 November 2026 at 08:00

It has been three years since Willem-Alexander said sorry, so please use your trip to the Caribbean to follow his exampleDear King Charles,You are currently on a Caribbean royal tour through the Bahamas, Guyana, and Antigua and Barbuda. I understand that during this tour you will not issue a formal apology for Britain’s role in the transatlantic slave trade, or address the role your own family played in it. You will instead express your “sorrow”, and this will make it easier for politicians to also dodge the question. Whether that is Kemi Badenoch calling an apology a “navel-gazing distraction”, or the prime minister, Andy Burnham, saying he would support an apology, while flatly opposing reparations.Raoul de Jong is a Dutch novelist Continue reading...
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