Prince Harry and Meghan calls Desmond Tutu an ’icon for racial injustice’ and ’a friend’ in touching tribute

Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, holding their son Archie, meet with Anglican Archbishop Emeritus, Desmond Tutu, in Cape Town. Picture: Henk Kruger/African News Agency (ANA)

Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, holding their son Archie, meet with Anglican Archbishop Emeritus, Desmond Tutu, in Cape Town. Picture: Henk Kruger/African News Agency (ANA)

Published Dec 27, 2021

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle has released a heartwarming tribute to Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and praised him for his life’s work.

Tutu passed away in Cape Town, aged 90, on Sunday.

“Archbishop Desmond Tutu will be remembered for his optimism, his moral clarity and his joyful spirit. He was an icon for racial injustice and beloved across the world,” read the statement.

The pair also remembered his meeting with their son Archie Harrison in 2019 during their royal tour in the country.

“It was only two years ago that he held our son, Archie, while we were in South Africa - “Arch and The Arch” he had joked, his infectious laughter ringing through the room, relaxing anyone in his presence. He remained a friend and will be sorely missed by all.“

President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed his heartfelt condolences to Tutu’s wife, Mam Leah Tutu, and the Tutu family and expressed his sadness on behalf of all South Africans.

“The passing of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu is another chapter of bereavement in our nation’s farewell to a generation of outstanding South Africans, who have bequeathed us a liberated South Africa. Desmond Tutu was a patriot without equal; a leader of principle and pragmatism, who gave meaning to the biblical insight that faith without works is dead,” said Ramaphosa said in a statement.

Born Desmond Mpilo Tutu on October 7, 1931 in Klerksdorp, the Anglican cleric received the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1984 for his non-violent role in opposing apartheid in South Africa.

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