1 month ago
13 ARTICLE AD
Everyone hoped that some kind of Invictus event would be part of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s agenda in Colombia, and it happened. On Friday, Harry and Meghan visited a training session for Colombia’s Invictus team. The visit was to Centro de Rehabilitación Inclusiva (the Inclusive Center for Rehabilitation) in Bogota. Fashion notes for Meghan: she wore a crisp white blouse by Giuliva Heritage and a skirt by Juan D. Dios (a Colombian designer!) plus Jimmy Choo sandals and of course her Cartier bracelet. She looks amazing and I love that she came with Harry for this Invictus event. She’s been such a big supporter for Invictus since 2017! Those veterans love to see her too. Speaking of, the idea of Harry and Meghan traveling the world and focusing on the issues they care about deeply has left the Windsors and their aides in a state of “bewilderment.”
Royal author Tom Quinn told the Mirror : “News that Harry and Meghan have accepted an invitation to tour Colombia has caused bewilderment, concern and some irritation among senior royals in the UK. The view is that Meghan and Harry are now so desperate to maintain their brand and stop the slide in their relevance that they are recklessly prepared to visit one of the most dangerous countries in the world – in 2023 Colombia had the third highest murder rate in South America.”
Colombia is notorious for its ‘high terrorist threat’, as well as skyrocketing rates of abduction incidents. Shocking Defence Ministry figures show that, from January to October 2022, at least 287 people were kidnapped by bandits, marking an alarming 73 per cent surge from the previous year. The UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has warned Brits to ‘reconsider’ travelling to the country unless absolutely essential.
According to Quinn, the author of Scandals of the Royal Palaces: An Intimate Memoir of Royals Behaving Badly, there have also been ‘grumbles’ amongst members of staff. He continued: “One or two palace officials have grumbled that Colombia is pretty much the only country that would have Meghan and Harry. And there is no doubt that senior Royals in the UK would have declined an invitation to visit a country where any kind of security is difficult to maintain. They are also worried that the Firm will be blamed for not trying to stop the tour should anything happen to Meghan and Harry while they are in Colombia.”
“There is no doubt that senior Royals in the UK would have declined an invitation to visit a country where any kind of security is difficult to maintain…” The Duchess of Edinburgh was literally in Bogota, Colombia last fall. She even did a photo-op with VP Francia Marquez, the same woman who invited the Sussexes. Why is Sophie catching strays in the Windsors’ jingoistic need to denigrate a whole-ass country? Also: “Colombia is pretty much the only country that would have Meghan and Harry…” I mean, except for Nigeria, Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, the United States and basically every country which competes in Invictus. Like, all of the countries with Invictus teams want to do what Nigeria did: bring the Sussexes over for some sparkle, and to bring attention to their own veterans’ programs and wounded-warrior programs.
“They are also worried that the Firm will be blamed for not trying to stop the tour should anything happen to Meghan and Harry while they are in Colombia…” So you’re admitting that the Windsors are morally responsible for ensuring the Sussexes’ safety? If the Windsors were so worried about “how it would look” if something happened to Harry and Meghan, the Windsors would have behaved very differently for the past six years.
Photos courtesy of Getty.
