During a People’s National Movement congress on Sunday, Prime Minister Keith Rowley announced that Trinidad and Tobago would update its coat of arms by the end of September, a decision that was greeted with a standing ovation.

“This is an important step towards removing the colonial remnants from our Constitution,” Rowley said.

The current coat of arms, featuring hummingbirds, a palm tree and Trinidad’s national bird, the scarlet ibis, has remained unchanged since the island gained independence from Britain in 1962. This redesign represents the first major change to the symbol. In addition, the country will soon hold public hearings to consider removing statues, signs and monuments with colonial references.

Rowley also advocates that the country sever its ties with Britain’s Privy Council as its highest court of appeal, a legal link still maintained by several Commonwealth countries, including Trinidad and Tobago. He expressed his desire for the country to no longer be a “squatter on the steps of the Privy Council,” as local media reported.

As part of this broader effort to shake off colonial influences, the new coat of arms will replace the image of Christopher Columbus’ three ships – the Pinta, the Nina and the Santa Maria – with the steelpan, a percussion instrument that originated on the island and has significant cultural significance. This change has been widely praised in the eastern Caribbean country.