Take Your Hands Off the BVI
Hundreds of residents, political leaders and clergy gathered at the Governor's residence on Friday, November 14, to protest the UK-appointed Governor's decision to revert Acting Police Commissioner Jacqueline Vanterpool to Deputy Commissioner. Speakers called the move unconstitutional and a sign of colonial overreach, while Governor Daniel Pruce has defended the action as lawful and administratively necessary.
Hundreds of protesters returned to the Governor’s residence on Friday, November 14, to demand that the United Kingdom leave local governance to Virgin Islanders. The demonstration, the second public protest in a week, centred on Governor Daniel Pruce’s decision to revert Acting Police Commissioner Jacqueline Vanterpool to her substantive post as Deputy Commissioner — a move activists say bypassed the Police Service Commission and violated constitutional norms.
The crowd included political figures, clergy, civil leaders and ordinary residents who said they were standing for Vanterpool and for the territory’s right to self-determination. National Democratic Party President Bishop John Cline described the Governor’s action as “unilateral” and “procedurally improper,” asserting it usurped the Police Service Commission’s constitutional authority. “We will fight for our rights as Virgin Islanders,” Cline said, framing the dispute as part of a longer struggle over respect and governance.
Former House Speaker Julian Willock also joined the protest, calling Vanterpool qualified and warning of broader consequences if the Governor’s intervention goes unchecked. “Once they kick out Jackie, they’re coming for immigration, they’re coming for Customs, they’re coming for the financial secretary’s post.
They want the ports… they will not stop until we are recolonised,” Willock told the crowd. Talk show host Claude Skelton Cline condemned what he called a “toxic marriage” between the UK and the BVI and urged collective resistance. “You have disrespected Jackie. You have disrespected all of us… To get to Jackie, you have to come through all of us,” he said, adding that the current constitutional arrangement feels “immoral” and “unequal.” Skelton Cline urged women and other residents to speak out against perceived systemic disrespect.
Governor Pruce has maintained that his decision was lawful, grounded in the Constitution and aimed at administrative efficiency. He defended the move during a local talk show earlier in the week, prompting protests at his residence on both Monday and Friday. The events have sharpened tensions between locally elected leaders and the UK-appointed Governor, raising wider questions for BVI residents about institutional authority, policing, and constitutional balance.
Protest organisers said they will continue to press their case publicly and demand answers from both the Governor’s office and the United Kingdom, while many in the territory watch closely for next steps from the Police Service Commission and other oversight bodies.
Primary source: BVI News