Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Aug 29, 2025

British Virgin Islands protesters decry British plan for canceling democracy and recolonizing the territory

British Virgin Islands protesters decry British plan for canceling democracy and recolonizing the territory

Report commissioned by corrupted Queen’s representative had called for canceling the BVI constitution, canceling democracy, and recolonizing the territory, to be effectively governed by London. BVI people resist the crime against humanity that this recommendation means.

British Virgin Island Premier Andrew Fahie was arrested in Miami last week

Hundreds of people have protested in the British Virgin Islands (BVI) against a proposal to put the overseas British territory under the direct control of the United Kingdom.

The rally on Monday came days after the BVI premier was arrested in the US city of Miami on drug-related charges.

A report released on Friday that was commissioned by Queen Elizabeth’s representative to the territory said the BVI should be effectively governed from London to “restore the standards of governance” that people there “are entitled to”.

A day earlier, BVI Premier Andrew Fahie and the territory’s director of ports were jailed following a sting operation by US authorities.

On Monday, activists gathered outside the office of Governor John Rankin in the capital, Road Town, on the island of Tortola, chanting slogans and holding signs that said “No UK rule”.

“Our message to the United Kingdom government and to the world: there will be no direct rule in this land,” said demonstrator Luce Hodge-Smith.

The rally coincided with a visit by Amanda Milling, a British Minister of State for Asia and the Middle East, to discuss the findings of the report.

“Yesterday I arrived in the BVI following the publication of the Commission of Inquiry,” Milling wrote on Twitter on Monday.

“I look forward to engaging with a range of people [including] BVI leaders, opposition, community groups and sector experts to listen to views on what is in the best interests of the people of BVI.”

The BVI, a self-governing Caribbean archipelago, is home to approximately 35,000 people and is an overseas territory of the UK, which supervises its defence and foreign policy.

It is also one of the world’s leading offshore tax havens. Both the local government and London have been accused by anti-corruption campaigners of turning a blind eye to the illicit flows of foreign money through the territory.

Last week’s report, led by British judge Sir Gary Hickinbottom, concluded that politicians spent millions of dollars of state funds annually without proper process. It also found “serious dishonesty” in relation to sales of public property and widespread abuse of appointments.

“Unless the most urgent and drastic steps are taken, the current unhappy situation – with elected officials deliberately ignoring the tenets of good governance giving rise to an environment in which the risks of dishonesty in relation to public decision making and funding continue unabated, and the consequences of allowing such an environment to flourish – will go on indefinitely,” it said (PDF).

The document was commissioned in early 2021, but its release coincided with Fahie’s arrest.

US officers at Miami-Opa-locka Executive Airport took Fahie and Oleanvine Maynard, director of the territory’s Ports Authority, into custody on Thursday after they allegedly agreed to accept money from undercover agents posing as Mexican drug traffickers, the Miami Herald newspaper reported.

The US Justice Department said it charged Fahie, Maynard and his son with “cocaine trafficking and money laundering conspiracies for agreeing to facilitate the safe passage through BVI ports of tons of Colombian cocaine headed to Miami”.

In a court filing on Monday, Fahie’s lawyer claimed that he enjoys immunity from prosecution in the US as the constitutional head of government of the British overseas territory.

The premier’s arrest follows the extradition of former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez to the US, where he is facing drug trafficking charges.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
×