Prince Harry has taken part in observing a minute’s silence in remembrance of Fidel Castro, in diplomatic terms, it was very awkward moment. The Prince also presented Duke of Edinburgh Gold Awards to young people who had achieved them during his visiting St Vincent as part of a 15-day tour of the Caribbean.
Prince Harry experienced very embarrassing moment during the ceremony on St Vincent. The awkward moment took place at a reception in the capital, Kingstown, hosted by the Caribbean country’s governor general, Sir Frederick Ballantyne.
News of Castro’s death at the age of 90 broke on Friday and the following day Harry was among those to bow his head when Ballantyne asked his guests to mark the death of the Cuban revolutionary leader.
Among them was the prime minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines and leader of the country’s ruling Unity Labour party, Dr Ralph Gonsalves, who described Castro as a good friend of his country.
Prince Harry, an awkward diplomatic moment during the visit St Vincent
He said Castro had invested in St Vincent, which had been a trading partner of nearby Cuba for decades. Prince Harry stood mute as the former Cuban leader was praised by Sir Frederick, it was an extremely awkward moment for the member of the British royal family.
Castro had a dim view of the concept of royalty and has been criticised for jailing and killing political opponents.
The incident prompted criticism from Conservative MPs, who said it was unfair that Prince Harry had been put in such a position. Alec Shelbrooke said the British government should make clear it was unacceptable, he told The Mail:
“Castro was a murderous dictator. He is dead, and good riddance. This endless stream of people excusing him, especially Labour MPs like Jeremy Corbyn, is ridiculous. It is very unfair to put pressure on members of the royal family to take part in this kind of tribute.”
His Conservative colleague Michael Fabricant told the paper:
“I am no fan of Fidel Castro, who was more of a tyrant than an enlightened leader. But I am a fan of Prince Harry. It must have been an awkward moment for him but hey, what else could he do?”
Despite this situation with minute of silence, Britain’s Prince Harry thrilled St Vincent locals yesterday when he stopped to talk to throngs of adoring fans lining the island’s streets waiting to catch a glimpse of him.
