History

In 1979, a commission of inquiry known as the Cox Commission on the Constitution was constituted and under the auspices of looking at the republic

Republic

A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...

 issue. The Cox Commission came to the conclusion that Barbadians preferred to maintain the constitutional monarchy

Constitutional monarchy

Constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a constitution, whether it be a written, uncodified or blended constitution...

. The proposal to move to a republican status was therefore not pursued. The 1994 manifesto

Manifesto

A manifesto is a public declaration of principles and intentions, often political in nature. Manifestos relating to religious belief are generally referred to as creeds. Manifestos may also be life stance-related.-Etymology:...

 of the Barbados Labour Party

Barbados Labour Party

The Barbados Labour Party is the main opposition party of Barbados. Led by Rt. Hon.Owen Arthur, the BLP holds 9 out of 30 seats in the House of Assembly as of January 2008...

 dealt both with the republic issue, proposing a referendum

Referendum

A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...

. In line with this promise, on 29 October 1996 a Constitution Review Commission, Chaired of Sir Henry Forde was appointed to review the Constitution of Barbados

Constitution of Barbados

The Constitution of Barbados is the supreme law under which Barbados is governed. The Constitution provides a legal establishment of the structure and various roles of administration of the Sovereign , the Vice-Royal , the Government of Barbados, as well as legal rights and responsibilities of the...

.

The Commission elected the Hon. Oliver Jackman, a former diplomat

Diplomat

A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...

 and a judge of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

Inter-American Court of Human Rights

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights is an autonomous judicial institution based in the city of San José, Costa Rica. Together with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, it makes up the human rights protection system of the Organization of American States , which serves to uphold and...

 as its Vice Chairman.
The Commission was mandated to:

1. “determine the necessity for retaining the Monarchical System of Government and make recommendations in respect of the Executive form of Government most suited to protect parliamentary democracy, the fundamental rights

Rights

Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people, according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory...

 and freedoms of the citizens

Barbados nationality law

The Barbadian nationality law is governed by the Law on Citizenship of Barbados , and by the Barbadian Constitution.- Definition of Barbadian citizenship :* By birth:...

 of Barbados

Barbados

Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...

 and to achieve effective and efficient Government so as to position Barbados to meet the challenges of the 21st century and beyond.

2. To advise and make recommendations concerning the appropriateness or otherwise of maintaining Barbados’ link with the Crown

Monarchy of Barbados

The monarchy of Barbados is a constitutional system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of Barbados, forming the core of the country's Westminster style parliamentary democracy...

.

3. To advise and make recommendations concerning a structure for the Executive Authority of Barbados that is best suited to protect the Independence and Authority of Parliament

Parliament of Barbados

The Parliament of Barbados is the national legislature of Barbados. It is accorded legislative supremacy by Chapter V of the Constitution of Barbados. The Parliament is bicameral in composition and is formally made up of: HM Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Barbados The Parliament of Barbados is the...

 and the fundamental rights and freedoms of its citizens.”

The Commission held public hearings in Barbados and overseas. The Commission reported back on 15 December 1998, and submitted its report to His Excellency the Governor-General of Barbados.

The Commission recommended that Barbados adopt a Parliamentary republic

Parliamentary republic

A parliamentary republic or parliamentary constitutional republic is a type of republic which operates under a parliamentary system of government - meaning a system with no clear-cut separation of powers between the executive and legislative branches. There are a number of variations of...

 system. In 1999 the Barbados Labour Party's Manifesto proposed that the findings of the Commission and its recommendation that Barbados become a republic would receive the early attention of the Government.

A Referendum Bill was introduced in Parliament and had its first reading on 10 October 2000. With the dissolution of Parliament just prior to the elections in 2003, the Referendum Bill was not carried over. A referendum on the issue was proposed again in 2008, but never was held.

Proposed referendum

A referendum on Barbados becoming a republic was planned to be held in Barbados

Barbados

Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...

 by August 2008, near to the time of the parliamentary elections. However, it was reported on December 2, 2007, that the vote was to be held at a later date instead.

Question

According to the Referendum Act 2005, the question to be asked is:

Debate

The Government of Barbados announced its intention to hold a referendum on the republic issue in February 2005. It introduced a Referendum Bill that month. The Bill was passed into law in October 2005. The Act did not set a date for the referendum, but instead specified that the "Referendum Day" could be proclaimed by the Governor-General, being no more than 90 days and no less than 60 days from the date of proclamation. The Act itself could not amend Barbados' constitution, because under section 49.1 a majority of two-thirds of Parliament is required to make any amendments.

Mia Mottley

Mia Mottley

Mia Amor Mottley, QC, MP is a Member of Parliament for the Constituency Saint Michael-North East at Barbados.-Early life:...

, then Deputy Prime Minister of Barbados (and now leader of the Opposition) said: "we feel that it is the right thing to do to have a Barbadian head of state. We accept that there was a concern that the Government alone should not make that decision in this day and age and we are therefore committed to expressing our views to the public and having them pass judgement on it."