Almost thirty years after the historic walk of Lady Diana among the unexploded mines in Angola, today her son Harry collects the witness with the same determination. Diana, in 1997, wearing an bulletproof jacket and surrounded by signs with skulls and warnings, chose to display itself to turn on the spotlight on the CDevastating onsences of terrestrial mines in the countries torn by the war.
His visit contributed to changing the course of history: a few months later, the Ottawa Convention was signed by 164 countries, the international treaty that prohibits the use, production and storage of anti -human mines.
Today, that message risks fading. Prince Harry returned to Angola, a Cuito Cuanavalein one of the areas still contaminated by unexploded devices, to support the work of The Halo Trustthe British organization engaged in smiling, with which her mother also collaborated.
During the visit he participated in the removal of anti -tank mines in one of the largest mined fields left in Africa. His gesture arrives in a delicate moment: Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Finland have announced theirs withdrawal from the Convention. A choice motivated by strategic concerns related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but which reopens the door to the use of one of the most indiscriminate weapons of our time.
“Children Should Never Have to Live in Fear of Playing Outside or Walking to School. The Angolan Government’s …
Posted by The Halo Trust On Wednesday, July 16, 2025
Anti -human mines: a still alive threat
According to the last Landmine Monitor (2023), At least 60 countries around the world They are still contaminated by anti -human mines or other residual explosive devices. Among the most affected there are:
Mines do not distinguish between soldiers and civilians, between adults and children. They kill and mutate years or decades often after the end of a conflict. Only in Angola, from 2008 to today, the mines have caused beyond 60,000 victims between deaths and wounded, and at least 80 deaths In the last five years, despite the massive remediation efforts.
Recent use in Ukraine – aside both Russian and Ukrainian – and the withdrawal of some European countries from the Treaty risk returning the world back to a theme that seemed to have found a fragile but fundamental convergence: protect civilians, always. Harry, with his symbolic gesture, reminds us that empathy and memory can still move consciences, if you listen.
