Last week, the world marked 22 years since Princess Diana passed away after a car crash in Paris. Today, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle shared a throwback picture of his mother during her African tour while announcing their upcoming tour of Africa.
In the poignant image, Diana stood between two men who used crutches to stand because they lost their legs as victims of landmine attacks, according to a report from Africa News . The people’s princess wore a sleeveless blue button-down shirt with a Red Cross patch on it. Khaki capris and matching slip-on shoes completed her attire. Perhaps most striking in the photo was the beautiful smile the mother of Prince William and Prince Harry had.
According to a Channel 24 report, Diana held her work in Africa near and dear to her heart. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, she worked hard to erase the stigma surrounding HIV and AIDS, which is still the leading cause of death in Botswana and Malawi. Before her death in 1997, the princess visited Angola and stepped into a cleared minefield, and she also met with the late Nelson Mandela in Cape Town. Her visit to Huambo helped raise awareness of the threat of the landmines in the region, and her work helped shed light on the plight of those who were maimed by the military hazard, which is now outlawed.
Unfortunately, according to The Telegraph , Diana, Princess of Whales passed away before seeing the fruits of her labor in Africa. A few months after he death in Paris on August 31, 1997, an international treaty banned the use of landmines.
“The Duke is especially proud to continue the legacy left by his mother with her work in Angola as he joins Halo Trust again in an effort to rid the world of landmines.”
Harry plans to visit Angola, Malawi, and Botswana by himself, and he will follow in the footsteps of his late mother during her 1997 African tour.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex embark on a tour to Africa in just two weeks. The duchess and their baby, Archie, will spend the duration of the trip in South Africa while the duke follows his mother’s journey 22 years after her visit. The family reunites in Johannesburg to finish out their time in the region, which runs from September 23 through October 2.
Their time in Africa will focus on “community, grassroots leadership, women’s and girls’ rights, mental health, HIV/AIDS, and the environment.”
