"Unacceptable situation" Prince Harry gives up heart project in Africa after row
Prince Harry (40) has given up his patronage of the project close to his heart in southern Africa. This is according to a statement from the younger son of King Charles III.
26.03.2025, 15:59
26.03.2025, 16:00
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- Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso have stepped down as patrons of the aid organization Sentebale, which they founded in 2006 in memory of their mothers.
- The background to this is a power struggle between the board of trustees and the chair of the board, Sophie Chandauka, which led to a rift within the organization.
- Chandauka describes herself as a whistleblower and makes accusations such as abuse of power and bullying; the British supervisory authority is investigating the case.
Prince Harry (40) is withdrawing from one of his most important commitments: the younger son of King Charles III has resigned his patronage of a project close to his heart in southern Africa. Harry made the announcement in an official statement.
Accordingly, both Harry and co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho are stepping down from their role as patrons of the Sentebale organization.
The background to this is a bitter dispute over the leadership of the organization, which was founded by the princes in 2006 in memory of their deceased mothers. Harry's mother, Princess Diana, was killed in a car accident in Paris in 1997. He was twelve years old at the time.
"Relationship irreparably damaged"
As reported by The Times, among others, the members of Sentebale's board of trustees wanted to force the chairwoman, Sophie Chandauka, to resign in a dispute over directional issues.
She responded with serious accusations and obtained an injunction to remain in office. The Board of Trustees then resigned as one. The two princes joined in solidarity.
"It is devastating that the relationship between the organization's Board of Trustees and the Chair of the Board has been irreparably damaged and an intolerable situation has arisen," the British news agency PA quoted from a joint statement by the two princes.
Chairwoman sees herself as a whistleblower
Sentebale is an organization that primarily supports AIDS orphans in Lesotho and Botswana. Its services include week-long camps and support with medical care and education. The name Sentebale means forget-me-not in the Lesotho language.
The outcome of the power struggle for Sentebale could not initially be predicted. Chairperson Chandauka issued her own press release in which she made accusations without going into details.
In it, Chandauka presented herself as a whistleblower who denounced problems of abuse of power, bullying and misogyny in the organization. She stated that she had called in the British charity regulator.
The authority told Deutsche Presse-Agentur that it was aware of concerns about Sentebale's governance. "We are looking into the matter to determine the appropriate regulatory steps to take," it added.
