Protest forces cancellation of first stop on Royals’ Caribbean tour

A protest by an indigenous group in Belize has forced the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to cancel the first stop on their royal tour of the Caribbean, according to reports.

Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton were planning to visit Akte’il Ha, a sustainable cacao plantation in Indian Creek, but Buckingham Palace cancelled the visit Friday when the Mayan residents protested their arrival.

The young royals are touring the Caribbean to mark Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee, which celebrates the monarch’s 70th year on the throne. Village elders said they had not been consulted about the couple’s helicopter landing in a soccer field in their village.

The cancellation comes as the royal couple embarks on a tour of Belize, Jamaica and the Bahamas in an effort to prevent Caribbean Commonwealth countries from following the example of Barbados, which voted to sever its ties to the British monarchy in 2020.