Prince Harry follows in his mother’s footsteps

The Duke of Sussex visited a de-mining site in Dirico, Angola, to raise awareness of the danger and prevalence of landmines that still exists today. Image @SussexRoyal @PA
The Duke of Sussex visited a de-mining site in Dirico, Angola, to raise awareness of the danger and prevalence of landmines that still exists today. Image @SussexRoyal @PA

In 1997, Princess Diana said, “If an international ban on mines can be secured it means, looking far ahead, that the world may be a safer place for this generation’s grandchildren.”

The Duke of Sussex today visited a de-mining site in Dirico, Angola, to raise awareness of the danger and prevalence of landmines that still exists. The Duke joined @thehalotrust in their work to help clear the area to enable safe access for the local community. He retraced his mother’s steps to see the legacy of her work and how her connection with this community helped make the elimination of landmines a reality.

 
Diana, Princess of Wales is seen in January 15 1997 walking in one of the safety corridors of the land mine fields of Huambo, Angola during her visit to help a Red Cross campaign to outlaw landmines worldwide. Britain imposed a total ban on the use of anti-personnel mines by its forces July 30 in a tribute to the campaign she launched that coincided with the first anniversary of her death.

In 1997 Diana Princess of Wales visited Huambo to bring global attention to the crisis of landmines and the people whose lives were being destroyed. Two decades later, the area has transformed from desolate and unhabitable to lively and vibrant, with colleges, schools and small businesses.

The Duke is humbled to be visiting a place and a community that was so special to his mother and to recognise her tireless mission as an advocate for all those she felt needed her voice the most, even if the issue was not universally popular.

This isn’t the first time the Prince has traced his mother’s footsteps. Prince Harry visited Mozambique with The HALO Trust in 2010.  

In 2010, Prince Harry was  seen with a deminer from The HALO Trust, a British charity dedicated to removal of landmines, on June 21, 2010 in Cahora Bassa, Mozambique. Princess Diana visited the same charity in Angola eight months before her death. At the time, Prince Harry spent two days with the charity learning the first stages of landmine clearance and detonated mines himself under supervision from deminers. (Handout Photo by The HALO Trust/Getty Images) 

Princess Diana’s visit helped change the course of history and directly led to the Convention against Anti-Personal Landmines, also known as the Ottawa Treaty. Today, with the support of @thehalotrust, Angola now has a stated aim under the Treaty to be clear of known mines by 2025. Despite great progress, 60 million people worldwide still live in fear of landmines every day.

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