Prince Harry Follows in Princess Diana’s Footsteps to Fight Landmines in Angola

LUANDA, Angola (AFP) — Britain’s Prince Harry visited Angola on Wednesday to support landmine clearance efforts, retracing the steps of his late mother, according to the charity spearheading the project.

Angola, a southern African nation, is home to the continent’s largest minefield, a grim legacy of the 27-year civil war that erupted after the country gained independence from Portugal in 1975.

The Duke of Sussex journeyed to a remote village in southeastern Angola to “deliver life-saving messages to children,” the Halo Trust, a mine-clearing organization, reported.

“The Duke repeated simple phrases in Portuguese, including ‘stop, go back and tell your elders’ to prevent children from accidentally triggering lethal devices,” the British charity stated.

Harry’s mother, Princess Diana, made a historic visit to Angola in 1997, famously walking across a cleared minefield near the central city of Huambo during a lull in the civil war.

This iconic trip took place just months before her tragic death in a Paris car crash. Harry was only 12 years old at the time.

In a poignant echo of his mother’s visit, Harry donned a protective visor and bulletproof vest on Wednesday to traverse demined shrubland before participating in a controlled bomb detonation exercise.

“Children should never have to live in fear of playing outside or walking to school. Here in Angola, more than three decades later, the remnants of war continue to threaten lives every day,” he emphasized.

The Halo Trust reports that since 2008, landmines have killed or injured at least 60,000 people in Angola. The organization has cleared over 100,000 explosive devices in the country.

The majority of casualties occurred in 2002 and 2003 when Angolans returned to their homes following the declaration of peace.

During her visit, Diana was famously photographed meeting some of the victims, images that helped bring global attention to the issue.

Since beginning operations in Angola in 1994, the Halo Trust has cleared landmines from an area nearly equivalent to 7,000 soccer fields.

Harry’s current visit follows a previous trip in September 2019 when he retraced his mother’s steps in Huambo.

The 40-year-old prince met with Angolan President Joao Lourenco on Tuesday to discuss ongoing demining efforts.