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Prince Harry has called on the public to embrace regular testing for HIV and Aids, as he paid tribute to his late mother’s work in breaking down the stigma attached to the disease.
The prince made the comments at the Attitude magazine awards on Thursday night, where Diana, Princess of Wales, was posthumously honoured with the legacy award 20 years after her death.
Picking up the prize on her behalf, Harry delivered a heartfelt speech about her impact on people affected by HIV and Aids.
After stepping on to the stage to applause and accompanied by the Adam & the Ants hit Prince Charming, he said: “I often wonder about what she would be doing to continue the fight against HIV and Aids if she were still with us today.
“I believe that she would be telling everyone across society – not just those most at risk – that with effective treatment being free and available in the UK, that we must all embrace regular testing – both for our own sake and for those that we love.
“She would be demanding that same access to treatment and testing for young people in Africa and across the world. She would, of course, be standing alongside those who are living openly as healthy, happy and HIV-positive. William and I are incredibly proud of what our mother achieved.”
Diana, Princess of Wales, in April 1991 talking with a man infected with the Aids virus during a visit to a hospital in Rio de Janeiro.
Remembering her work before her death in 1997, he said: “She knew that Aids was one of the things that many wanted to ignore and seemed like a hopeless challenge. She knew that the misunderstanding of this relatively new disease was creating a dangerous situation when mixed with homophobia.
“So when, that April, she took the hand of a 32-year-old man with HIV, in front of the cameras, she knew exactly what she was doing. She was using her position as Princess of Wales – the most famous woman in the world – to challenge everyone to educate themselves, to find their compassion and to reach out to those who need help instead of pushing them away.
“In the year before my mother’s death, the first truly effective anti-retroviral treatments were developed for HIV and Aids. She did not live to see this treatment become widely available and save countless lives in the UK and around the world.”
As he thanked Attitude for the award, the publication unveiled a limited-edition magazine cover featuring a black-and-white photograph of Diana by Patrick Demarchelier.
Separately, Harry has been invited to attend the inaugural summit of theObama foundation this month. The prince has developed a firm friendship with Barack and Michelle Obama and has agreed to take part in the event being held on 31 October in Chicago.
Last year Michelle Obama attended the opening ceremony of Harry’s Invictus Games for wounded and injured service personnel when it was staged in Orlando, Florida. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the prince hosted the Obamas at Kensington Palace when the US couple travelled to the UK for the last time as president and first lady.
The foundation’s website says its mission is “to inspire and empower people to change their world”. Kensington Palace said: “During the event Prince Harry will take part in a conversation about ways to support and encourage youth leadership to tackle both local and global challenges.”
His office said the prince would use part of the discussion to highlight a project in Nottingham, supported by his Royal Foundation, that aims to deter young people from becoming involved in violence and gang-related activities.
(THE GUARDIAN)
