Prince Harry and Meghan Markle talk about Africa mission
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What we've been covering here:
Duke and Duchess at the beach: Harry and Meghan started day two of their Africa tour at Monwabisi beach, meeting several youth organizations.
Later: Harry set sail on his own, joining the City of Cape Town’s Marine Unit to learn about their efforts to combat abalone poaching.
Walkabout: This afternoon, the royal couple visited a mosque and took a walk around the colorful streets of Bo-Kaap, stopping in for refreshments with a local family.
Where’s Archie? Royal fans continue to wait for the moment the pair’s son Archie will make his first official public appearance.
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Day 2 of Harry and Meghan's African tour draws to a close
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are finishing up their second day in Cape Town with a reception at the British High Commissioner Nigel Casey’s residence.
Harry and Meghan are chatting to young community leaders – and have even been called upon to help one guest whose heel got stuck in the lawn.
Our coverage of the royal tour is drawing to a close for the day, but we’ll be back tomorrow, when Archiewatch will continue.
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Archie “the most calm, beautiful, easy baby,” Meghan tells South African hosts
From CNN's Lauren Said-Moorhouse in Bo-Kaap, Cape Town
Nazli Edross-Fakier met Harry and Meghan when they visited her sister's home in Bo-Kaap, Cape Town.
Lauren Moorhouse/CNN
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have told wellwishers in Cape Town that their baby son is enjoying his visit to the city.
Meghan “said Archie is the most calm, beautiful, easy baby,” Nazli Edross-Fakier, 61, told CNN, adding that the new mother had told her “He travels well — he slept most of the time on her chest. And then Daddy said ‘He’s come alive, he’s shouting and screaming and carrying on.’”
Edross-Fakier met the royal couple when they visited her sister Shaamila Samoodien’s home in the Bo-Kaap district of the city on Tuesday.
A longtime fan of Meghan in her former career as an actress on the TV series Suits, Edross-Fakier said she had joked with the Duchess.
“I said: ‘We fell in love with you before Harry!’ and she just giggled and I think it made her feel good.”
Edross-Fakier said she remembered seeing Harry as a little boy, following the coffin of his mother Diana, who she also loved, and how striking it had been to see him right there in her family’s home.
“They came in, and they sat down and I introduced myself and told her that we’d fallen in love with her, and she said how happy she felt, and the warmness, and just the relaxed atmosphere of this whole event in Bo-Kaap.”
“I think the whole Cape Town tour has been a relaxed thing and she’s pleasantly surprised at the welcome and the niceness of the people,” Edross-Fakier added.
During their visit, the family served the royals tea and koeksisters, a popular doughnut-like South African snack, flavoured with cinnamon, aniseed and cardamom.
“They enjoyed themselves,” said Edross-Fakier. “I think they felt at ease, they weren’t being pressured. It wasn’t a political thing, it wasn’t a religious thing – they were comfortable. It was a few minutes of feeling relaxed.”
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Harry and Meghan "overwhelmed" by welcome in Cape Town
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex say they have been “overwhelmed by the amazing welcome” they received in Cape Town on the second day of their official visit to the city.
Posting on their official Instagram feed, the couple wrote that they had spent the day “celebrating the great diversity of cultures, beliefs and traditions that make up the rainbow nation.”
Harry and Meghan spent part of Heritage Day – a South African public holiday – in Bo-Kaap, a vibrant neighborhood packed with colorfully-painted houses.
“The area has seen inter-community tension rise over the last few years, yet days like today show how faith, traditions, food and music bring people together, and celebrate the things that unite each and every one of us,” they wrote.
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"I felt joy and love," says South African girl who met Meghan
From CNN's Lauren Said-Moorhouse in Bo-Kaap, Cape Town
Meghan and Harry spent time in Bo-Kaap meeting some of the local residents.
Libo Maguba, 11, was among those excited to meet the royal couple.
“They asked my name and gave me a hug – both of them – and asked me where I lived,” the schoolgirl told CNN. “I felt joy and love and it was wonderful!”
Okwam Poswa, 9, said Meghan “asked my name and then gave me a handshake – it was cool!”
His friend Yakhani Siwundla, also 9, told CNN Meghan had asked “‘How’s your day? Fine so far?’ and then I said ‘It was great, because I met you!’ and then she gave me a hug!”
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Harry and Meghan greet crowds in Cape Town
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex walked from Auwal Mosque and through an arch to the top of Chiappini Street, in the heart of Bo-Kaap, to greet residents who had waited for hours in the afternoon sun.
Meghan and Harry stopped to watch a rousing performance by a marching band on the before greeting children from a local organization called Brave.
Next, they stopped in for coffee and snacks with a local family.
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Meghan wins fans after message for South Africa’s women
From CNN's Lauren Said-Moorhouse in Bo-Kaap, Cape Town
The Duchess of Sussex’s comments on South Africa’s ongoing gender-based violence crisis have been well received by many women and girls here in Cape Town.
Meghan told a crowd at Nyanga township yesterday: “My husband and I have been closely following what you’ve been experiencing here … now that we are with you, we are eager to learn and see first-hand … the vital work that you’re doing, and that everything that is being done … is making the great change that you not only need, but that you deserve.”
She added: “While I am here with my husband as a member of the royal family, I want you to know that … I am here with you as a mother, as a wife, as a woman, as a woman of colour and as your sister. I am here with you and I am here FOR you.”
Samantha Mueller, 19, is here with her mom Cybil, to welcome the Duchess to Cape Town. She told CNN Meghan has been her “role model since I was in primary school.”
Mueller said Meghan’s humanitarian work was important and that’s why she had come to Bo-Kaap with her sign.
“Gender-based violence doesn’t start and end at South Africa’s borders,” Mueller explained, adding that to break the cycle, international support was incredibly important.
Also waiting for a glimpse of Meghan and Harry were Laeeqa Pangarker, 16, and her mom, Naeema, 36.
Both are fans of Meghan from Suits but they too want to highlight the issue of femicide in South Africa.
They are excited the royal couple is in town because “their platform is bigger than ours.”
”Now is the time to help us,” Laeeqa told CNN.
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Harry and Meghan arrive for mosque visit
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex visit Cape Town's Auwal Mosque during their royal tour of South Africa.
Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson Collection/Getty Images
Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, have arrived at the Auwal Mosque – the oldest masjid in South Africa – for their visit.
The pair are touring Cape Town’s Bo-Kaap district to mark Heritage Day.
After leaving the mosque, they will walk around the area’s vibrantly-colored streets, and take tea at the home of some local residents.
UPDATE: The couple later posted photographs of their visit to the Auwal Mosque on their official Instagram account
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Royal fans wait in Bo-Kaap
From CNN's Lauren Said-Moorhouse in Bo-Kaap, Cape Town
Members of the Brave group wait to meet Prince Harry and Meghan in Cape Town's Bo-Kaap neighborhood.
Lauren Moorhouse/CNN
One of the groups waiting to catch a glimpse of Harry and Meghan here in Bo-Kaap is Brave, a non-profit organization that uses yoga, meditation and Ayurvedic therapies to help those suffering acute physical trauma.
It was started by Robyne Conway 15 years ago after she fractured her spine and pelvis when a balcony she was on collapsed beneath her.
Despite such a traumatic event she insists the accident was “the best thing that happened to me,” because it took her on a path to setting up Brave.
Conway told CNN she feels a “close affinity” to the royal couple because of Harry’s work with the Invictus Games, and Meghan’s practice of yoga.
She says everyone involved with Brave is incredibly excited to meet Harry and Meghan when they visit Bo-Kaap to mark Heritage Day, a public holiday celebrating South Africa’s cultural diversity.
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Festivities underway in Bo-Kaap ahead of the Sussexes' arrival
From CNN's Lauren Said-Moorhouse in Bo-Kaap, Cape Town
After a quick break for lunch, Harry and Meghan will soon be headed to the Bo-Kaap district of Cape Town, to visit the Auwal mosque and meet well-wishers in the area.
Bo-Kaap is a vibrant neighborhood where many of the buildings are painted in Instagram-friendly bright colors.
Today there are marching bands in the streets, creating a festival-like atmosphere.
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When are we going to see Archie?
From CNN’s Lauren Said-Moorhouse and David Wilkinson in Bo-Kaap, Cape Town
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, pose with their son Archie during a photocall in St George's Hall at Windsor Castle on May 8, 2019.
WPA Pool/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images
It’s only day two of the royal tour in southern Africa but the question on everyone’s lips is: When will little Archie make an appearance?
It’s got to be somewhere safe, somewhere crowds can be controlled and a place they can bail out of easily, should Archie get overwhelmed.
When the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge took Prince George on his first official overseas trip in 2014, they took him to a playgroup session in Wellington. But there are no play groups on this royal program and there are a limited number of possible options for the parents.
One engagement many are speculating over is this evening’s youth reception at the British High Commissioner’s residence. If the young royal doesn’t attend that, another contender is the meeting with Archbishop Desmond Tutu tomorrow morning.
Watch this space…
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Why is Harry shining a spotlight on shellfish?
A file photograph of a Hong Kong shop employee walking past shelves of jars containing dried abalone and other seafood goods.
ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP/Getty Images
For his first solo engagement of the tour, Prince Harry headed off to Seal Island with officers from the Cape Town Marine Unit.
The Prince took a boat out to the island where he was briefed on how the group is tackling abalone poaching – one of South Africa’s most significant illegal wildlife trade issues.
Abalone are a prized seafood delicacy that can sell for hundreds of dollars.
But their popularity has seen stocks depleted at a record rate, as high demand pushes poachers into undertaking dangerous and illegal dives off the country’s coast.
Harry was joined by two members of the British Royal Marines who have been in South Africa training the Marine Unit.
In 2018, a UK training team was deployed to Cape Town to assist the city’s Maritime Police Unit . They have since detained a number of abalone smugglers operating under cover of darkness in the area.
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How Archie has already helped thousands
He may only be four months old, but Harry and Meghan’s son Archie has already helped thousands of people in South Africa – even if he doesn’t know it yet.
Before he was born, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex encouraged well-wishers to donate to one of four charities in lieu of gifts. One of those charities was The Lunchbox Fund here in South Africa. The organization provides a daily school meal to vulnerable and food-insecure children.
As a result of the support of the royal couple, the Lunchbox Fund said it “was able to provide over 150,000 nutritionally-fortified meals for children.”
During the visit at Waves for Change earlier today, the couple learned more about the food program, which offers nearly 30,000 meals daily to children who would otherwise go hungry, and also visited the Waves for Change compound kitchen, where the nutritious food is prepared.
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Meghan says people need to talk about mental health
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, has said there is a global “consciousness crisis” regarding mental health.
Asked what was the most pressing global issue concerning the stigma surrounding mental health, the Duchess told UK media people needed to talk to each other.
“It’s about getting people to talk about it, and to talk to each other, and you see that no matter where you are in the world, whether you’re in a small community or … a big city, it’s that everyone is dealing with a different version of the same thing,” she said.
Prince Harry and Meghan in Cape Town
“Globally, I think there’s a bit of a consciousness crisis and so the fact that we’re able to be here together and see on the ground so much good work that’s being done just because people are willing to talk to each other about it, and someone is willing to listen, is huge.”
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"There's so much good happening in the world," says Meghan
Meghan and Harry speak to CNN's Max Foster on the second day of their royal tour of South Africa.
Lauren Moorhouse/CNN
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, has hailed the work of a charity trying to steer young people away from violence in the townships of South Africa.
“What’s so amazing about being here today is seeing there is so much good happening in the world and there’s so much positivity, and … diversity and inclusivity,” she told CNN’s Max Foster in False Bay, Cape Town.
Speaking to the media for the first time since the couple’s photocall introducing baby Archie to the world in May, Meghan praised the efforts of the mentors at Waves for Change, an organization that uses surfing to encourage teenagers not to get involved in crime.
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South Africa's surfers help kids recover
From CNN's David McKenzie and Brent Swails
On Tuesday, Prince Harry and wife, Meghan, are visiting Waves for Change – an innovative charity that takes children out of the violent neighborhoods they live in and teaches them how to surf and, hopefully, how to heal.
Where they live is just a few miles away, but the contrast couldn’t be starker.
“It is better here because they shoot where we live,” said 12-year-old Chloe, “They shoot, they rape people, they abuse people.”
Waves for Change was started by Tim Conibear, who traveled to South Africa after graduating from university in the UK.
Between fifty and eighty children are brought to the beaches around False Bay for weekly sessions. First, they talk about their experiences in a kind of relaxed group therapy session – then they suit up in wetsuits and hit the waves.
Simply separating them from their environments so they can be be outside of gang and crime affected areas is important, says Keenan Adonis, a coach for the charity.
“Things like violence fascinates them. Because it’s happening at their the next door neighbor’s, it’s happening in the next road. They stand near the crime scene. They want to see what is happening. They want to know, ‘Is that my friend laying there?’” he said.
Adonis says that the kids like Chloe, who stick with the program, are transformed.
“It helps me because we have manners here, no swearing, no fighting and they care about us here,” Chloe said.
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Harry and Meghan arrive for first engagement of the day
From CNN's Lauren Said-Moorhouse in Cape Town
Britain’s Duke and Duchess of Sussex have arrived for the day’s first event — meeting volunteers from Waves for Change, a local initiative in False Bay that uses surfing to provide mental health service to vulnerable young people from challenging communities.
Surfers from Waves for Change dance and sing while waiting for the royal couple to reemerge from their tour inside.
Lauren Moorhouse/CNN
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Archiewatch continues after Meghan and Harry show off their moves
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex kicked off their tour in southern Africa with their first stop in Cape Town on Monday.
They headed to Nyanga township to meet members of a local initiative who educate children about their rights and empower young girls through self-defense classes.
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex dance with a group of performers at their first engagement in South Africa after touching down in Cape Town on Monday.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Prince Harry appeared to be a big hit with the young well-wishers gathered in Nyanga.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Meghan gave a powerful speech Monday, praising the female empowerment work being done by the Justice Desk. "I am here as a mother, as a wife, as a woman, as a woman of color and as your sister," she said.
Ian Vogler/Pool/Getty Images
After a quick wardrobe change for Meghan, Cape Town residents were treated to a royal walkabout when the pair traveled to District Six, a formerly multicultural neighborhood which was declared “Whites Only” under apartheid, forcing residents from their homes.
Enthusiastic crowds of well-wishers were delighted to see the royal couple on the streets, despite the fact they left baby Archie with his nanny.
One royal fan described the moment the Duke and his wife came over to the barricade and shook his hand as “an out-of-body experience” while another joked that he was “never going to wash this hand again.”
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Day 2: A beach visit, boat ride and Bo Kaap
Meghan and Harry smile as they visit a Justice Desk initiative in Nyanga township, during their royal tour of South Africa on Monday.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Good morning and welcome to day two of our coverage of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s tour of South Africa. The pair are on a 10-day tour of southern Africa, with Harry due to head to Botswana, Angola and Malawi later this week.
It’s another busy day for our traveling royals as they head to Monwabisi Beach, near Cape Town’s Khayelitsha township. There they will meet with community initiatives including Waves for Change, an NGO that offers mental health services to vulnerable young people, and The Lunchbox Fund, a local scheme that supplies nearly 30,000 meals to several townships and rural areas.
Harry will then leave Meghan in Cape Town and head off solo, traveling to Seal Island accompanied by officers from the City of Cape Town Marine Unit where he will learn about their efforts to tackle abalone poaching.
Later, the pair will head to Cape Town’s Bo Kaap area to mark Heritage Day. They will tour the Auwal Mosque, the oldest masjid in South Africa, before walking around the vibrantly-colored streets of Bo Kaap, taking tea at the home of some local residents.
The Sussexes will round out the day attending a reception at the British High Commissioner Nigel Casey’s residence, where they will have the opportunity to chat to young future leaders.
