King Charles III's long standing position that he cannot apologize for slavery could soon change after British Prime Minister Andy Burnham indicated a possible shift in the British Government's position. Charles is preparing to give a major speech to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting [CHOGM], in Antigua and Barbuda, on Tuesday at which his audience will include the leaders of countries that were previously part of the British Empire before becoming independent. He is not expected to apologize in the speech but it will be his first dealing with the issue since Burnham's remarks.
Ahead of the summit, Burnham indicated the U.K. could be open to a possible change in the country's stance on slavery, writing in The Guardian: "Listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state will form an important part of this process, and I am open to them." To . The king is Britain's ceremonial head of state but does not decide government policy and constitutionally cannot oppose his own government. That convention has long made an apology for slavery impossible for the Monarchy.
However, Burnham has indicated he could shift toward apologizing for slavery while refusing calls to pay reparations. Such a change, if it happens, would then open the door to Charles apologizing too. "For years, those members of the Commonwealth affected by the slave trade have asked for an honest conversation about the legacies of slavery," Burnham wrote in his Guardian piece last week.
"By sticking our heads in the sand, we have damaged the ability of the Commonwealth to function." While his words moved British foreign policy closer to the apology asked for by countries affected by slavery, Burnham made it clear he did not plan to shift stance on reparations. "We are offering a structured dialogue with those affected by the trans-Atlantic slave trade," he wrote. "Listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state will form an important part of this process, and I am open to them.
"Some have called for financial reparations for the slave trade. I do not believe that is the right answer. I do not think that British people today can be held liable for historical wrongs, however heinous, that happened in a different age under different laws and in which they played no personal part." Burnham is preparing for his first meeting of the leaders of the 56 Commonwealth countries and it is expected reparations and slavery will be discussed.
The Commonwealth is a voluntary partnership that emerged out of the decline of the British Empire, however, it is not exclusively made up of countries that gained independence from the U.K. Some countries that were never colonized by Britain have chosen to join over the years, such as Rwanda. The Prime Minister's comments increase the pressure on Charles to pull off his speech with no slip ups but it is not currently expected that he will include an apology.
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