People in the village of Indian Creek believe the Duke of Cambridge should be held responsible for the dispute as Flora and Fauna International's patron. Photo / Getty Images
People in the village of Indian Creek believe the Duke of Cambridge should be held responsible for the dispute as Flora and Fauna International's patron. Photo / Getty Images
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been forced to ditch the first engagement of their Caribbean trip after a village protest broke out yesterday.
The royal duo were scheduled to travel to the Akte'il Ha cacao sustainable farm in Belize on Sunday and land their helicopter in Boden Creek.
But, after locals staged a protest on Friday and denounced the visit from the royals as "colonialism" and a "slap in the face", Kensington Palace scrapped the planned visit.
Let's look at why the visit by the royals to the area was so contentious and Kensington Palace's response.
The village of Indian Creek is disputing with the state and Flora and Fauna International – a charity which tries to protect ecosystems globally – over 12,000 acres of land that Flora and Fauna International now owns but was lost by villagers in the colonial era.
The community is angry that these 12,000 acres is now "private property", according to Flora and Fauna International, meaning they cannot use it.
A lighter moment when the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the area. Photo / Getty Images
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were meant to land their helicopter on this land.
The protest
The indigenous Q'eqchi Maya people have said that they were not advised about the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's visit to the village, so they held a meeting for the community which resulted in yesterday's protest.
Police refused the community's request to stage the protest during the Duke and Duchess's visit on Sunday because of potential security breaches that could occur.
As a result, villagers protested yesterday and carried banners which said "Prince William leave our land" and "Colonial legacy of theft continues with Prince and FFI".
Chairman of the Indian Creek village, Sebastian Shol, explained the reason for the alarm of villagers: "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."
According to youth leader of the village, Dioniso Shol, the manner in which the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's visit had been handled was very colonial in nature.
He said: "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.
"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."
An example of the signs villagers were carrying. Photo / Supplied
Shol said even though the village's issue was with Flora and Fauna International, Prince William should be held responsible as its patron.
Why did the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge want to visit the region?
Prince William has been the patron of Flora and Fauna International since 2020. He is the latest in a long line of royals who have been patron for the organisation since George VI. The Duke and Duchess' trip was in celebration of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.
A villager carries a sign protesting the couple's visit. Photo / Supplied
How has Kensington Palace handled it all?
There has been no comment from the Palace at this stage but aides for the royal duo have confirmed that the visit has been canned and that the duo would make other arrangements.
