Prince Harry resigns from his own charity after 'devastating' decision: 'We are in shock'
By Natalie Oliveri|
Prince Harry has made the "unthinkable" and "devastating" decision to step down from his charity Sentebale, which is named in honour of his late mother Diana.
The Duke of Sussex and the charity's co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho both resigned "in support of and solidarity with the board of trustees" due to infighting in the organisation.
In a joint statement, shared by The Times, Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso said the dispute had created "an untenable situation".
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"What's transpired is unthinkable," they said. "We are in shock that we have to do this."
Sentebale was co-founded by Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso of Lesotho in 2006 following the duke's gap year there in 2004.
Its name means 'forget me not' and was inspired by Princess Diana's favourite flower.
The charity was inspired by Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso's mothers, women who used their platforms to raise awareness about difficult subjects and brought hope and help to vulnerable communities.
It helps children affected by extreme poverty and HIV/AIDS in Lesotho, Botswana and Malawi.
According to The Times, the charity is said to be in a state of crisis and is now the subject of a Charity Commission investigation.
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In a joint statement, Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso said the decision was made "with heavy hearts".
They said: "Nearly 20 years ago, we founded Sentebale in honour of our mothers. Sentebale means 'forget-me-not' in Sesotho, the local language of Lesotho, and it's what we've always promised for the young people we've served through this charity.
"Today is no different. With heavy hearts, we have resigned from our roles as patrons of the organisation until further notice, in support of and solidarity with the board of trustees who have had to do the same.
"It is devastating that the relationship between the charity's trustees and the chair of the board broke down beyond repair, creating an untenable situation."
The conflict within the charity is said to be centred around a loss in trust and confidence in the chair, The Times reports.
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Last year Zimbabwe-born lawyer Sophie Chandauka was appointed to the post. She is understood to be suing the trustees after they questioned whether she was best placed to chair the board.
It followed the resignation of CEO Richard Miller in December who stepped down after five years at the helm of the organisation.
The move was part of a bigger plan to base the most critical senior roles in southern Africa, enabling the organisation to shift greater executive decision-making power to the region, the charity said
Miller became the fourth person to resign from the charity, following the departure of three others in recent months.
Weeks earlier Baroness Lynda Chalker stepped down as a director after 18 years with the charity, while Johnny Hornby resigned after 11 years as a trustee, five of which he spent as chairman.
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Andrew Tucker also stepped back from his senior position at Sentebale after almost a decade.
Today's statement from Prince Harry and Prince Seeiso appeared to be in support of the departing trustees.
"These trustees acted in the best interest of the charity in asking the chair to step down, while keeping the wellbeing of staff in mind. In turn, she sued the charity to remain in this voluntary position, further underscoring the broken relationship.
"We thank all the trustees for their service over the years and are truly heartbroken they've had to follow through with this act.
"What's transpired is unthinkable. We are in shock that we have to do this, but we have a continued responsibility to Sentebale's beneficiaries, so we will be sharing all of our concerns with the Charity Commission as to how this came about.
"Although we may no longer be patrons, we will always be its founders, and we will never forget what this charity is capable of achieving when it is in the right care."
Prince Harry travelled to Lesotho for events with Sentebale in October for the first time since 2018.
And in December, he was in New York to celebrate the launch of a fundraising exhibition for Sentebale.
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