Prince Harry followed in Princess Diana’s legendary footsteps today in Angola.
The 35-year-old Duke of Sussex walked the exact path his late mother took (also at the age of 35) through a now deactivated minefield in Huambo. The princess visited the site in 1997 to bring attention to the land mine crisis and the lives it was destroying. As Prince Harry saw for himself today, the bleak area she once walked through is now a spirited city with schools and small businesses.
Prince Harry opened up about the experience in a speech he delivered following the walk, saying, “It has been quite emotional retracing my mother’s steps along this street 22 years later. And to see the transformation that has taken place from an unsafe and desolate area to a vibrant community of local business and colleges.”
In addition to visiting the site of Princess Diana’s historic walk that led to the Convention against Anti-Personal Landmines (also known as the Ottawa Treaty) being enacted, Prince Harry also walked through a de-mining site in Dirico, Angola.
In an Instagram post on his @sussexroyal account, his communications secretary wrote that his visit was meant to “raise awareness of the danger and prevalence of landmines that still exist today.”
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex commemorated Princess Diana’s efforts to bring global attention to the land mines of Huambo and also posted an Instagram photo of the late royal on that historic day.
A lengthy caption explained, “The duke is humbled to be visiting a place and a community that was so special to his mother, and to recognize her tireless mission as an advocate for all those she felt needed her voice the most, even if the issue was not universally popular.”
Thanks to the wheels that Princess Diana put in motion and the support of The Halo Trust, Angola is expected to be free of known land mines by 2025. Although much progress has been made, 60 million people globally live in daily fear of land mines.
Consider this yet another way Prince Harry is protecting the memory of his beloved mother so many years after her passing.
