After marrying into the Royal Family, Princess Diana threw herself into public service, showing she was prepared to go where others weren’t. One of these places was the minefields of Angola, where she walked as a patron of the HALO Trust. The organisation is dedicated to removing war debris but focussed on landmines, scattered throughout the country in the wake of African proxy wars. Now, 21 years after her death, Prince Harry has become a patron of the organisation, but not before acknowledging the controversy behind Diana’s ideals.

Speaking in June this year, Prince Harry threw his support behind his mother’s former patronage, pledging to extract landmines from Angola.

While speaking, Harry said people perceived Diana’s efforts as “over the line”.

He said: “The attention my mother brought to this issue wasn’t universally popular; some believed she had stepped over the line into the arena of political campaigning—but for her, this wasn’t about politics; it was about people.

“There is no question that a huge amount has been achieved in the last 20 years.”

“But in marking how far we have come, we must also acknowledge that there is much more which needs to be done to fulfil the commitments of the Ottawa treaty.”

Princess Diana’s efforts were not received well by some in government, namely Tory cabinet members.

One such critic was Earl Howe, a junior Tory defence minister.

He branded Diana a “loose cannon” in reaction to her calls for a landmine ban, and claimed she was “ill-informed on the issue of anti-personnel mines”.

The Earl added she was a voice the Queen’s government “did not need”.

Peter Viggers, a Tory member of the defence select committee at the time, called out the princess for breaching government lines.

He said: “We all know landmines and other weapons are vicious and nasty.

“The question is how best to negotiate so they are not used in future.

“The government’s policy on this has been an extremely careful one and the statements made by the Princess of Wales have not been in line with that policy.”

Prince Harry is currently touring Africa with his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and their son Archie Mountbatten.

While there, the Prince is expected to oversee upgrades to a hospital dedicated to Princess Diana’s landmine work.

The Prince will visit the Huambo Orthopaedic Centre in Angola, where the HALO Trust is based.

The centre is currently undergoing upgrades and will take on Diana’s name in her honour on completion.

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