Prince Harry to help fight Aids
2005-02-20 10:21
London - Britain's Prince Harry, who sparked worldwide outrage last month for wearing a Nazi uniform to a fancy dress party, will launch a fund to fight poverty and Aids in Africa this week, a report said on Sunday.
The 20-year-old grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, who has already raised an initial £1m, will visit Lesotho in southern Africa to oversee grants from the charity fund before starting a military course back home in May, the Sunday Times said.
Following advice from the United Nations, the young prince would work with the Red Cross and the British charity Comic Relief, the newspaper reported, without citing sources.
The Sunday Times noted that Harry had been under pressure to fulfil a promise to continue the charity work of his mother, the late Princess Diana.
But critics have questioned his commitment, suggesting that his activities appeared to be driven by public relations advisors, it said.
Last month, the prince had to apologise for turning up to a fancy-dress party in a version of a World War II German Afrika Korps uniform featuring a swastika armband.
In his new role, Harry would be joint patron of the fund, which would hold its first meeting this week, the newspaper reported, noting that he raised the initial £1m through donations and sales of a television programme on an earlier trip to Lesotho.