Charles accepts ‘painful aspects of our past’ as King bids farewell to Samoa – Royal family news

Charles and Queen Camilla ended their four-day state visit to Samoa on Friday as they boarded their plane back to the UK.

Before departing, the King and Queen visiteda village twinned with the UK and later sheltered under umbrellas when they boarded their plane home in torrential rain.

Camilla went ahead of her husband, who chatted to dignitaries for a few minutes before joining his wife at the top of the steps and they both waved goodbye to the Pacific nation.

Charles and Queen Camilla ended their four-day state visit to Samoa by visiting a village twinned with the UK.

Villages around the Samoan capital Apia are twinned with each of the 56 member states of the Commonwealth, flying the flags of the countries they have adopted, with street furniture painted in the national colours.

In his impromptu speech Charles said: “We’ve been so impressed by the beautiful way in which all the villages have decorated the roadsides, it is something very special about Samoa.”

He thanked residents for their “wonderful generosity” bringing gifts of food and “other wonderful things”, and said the royal couple would take away “special memories of our time here”.

When the couple arrived, a downpour began, drenching villagers and elders gathered for a ceremony in which a drink made from powdered kava root is drunk, signifying unity.

Charles and Camilla were presented with pink garland necklaces before taking a seat on beige leather throne-style chairs.

The King was honoured with the chiefly title of To’aiga-O-Tumua by the village’s high chief, as he and Camilla were presented with sacred kava in coconut shells with straws.

“May God bless this kava,” said Charles as he lifted the cup and drank.

The chief told Charles: “Your papa, Prince Philip, was here, so thank you for making the time. Your royal visit has lifted our house.”

The King has said he will “always remain devoted to this part of the world” as he said farewell to Samoa.

Charles and Queen Camilla ended their four-day state visit to Samoa by visiting a village twinned with the UK, as a major Commonwealth summit was hosted by the Pacific nation.

After his landmark speech at the opening of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm) on Friday, the King and his wife took part in a cultural welcome as guests of Siumu village the following day.

He told his guests: “I shall always remain devoted to this part of the world and hope that I survive long enough to come back again and see you all.”

The royal couple visited the Polynesian nation, which is hosting a major gathering of Commonwealth leaders, after their tour of Australia – the first by Charles after his coronation.

King Charles formally opened the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, which took place for the first time with him as its head.

The Duchess of York, 65, made her debut on the platform with a poignant video reflecting on her breast cancer diagnosis.

Ferguson how she felt “total abject fear” when she received the medical news and recalled not being able to speak as she drove between hospitals.

“I just shut down, I went back into [a] little girl. It was easier not to ask for support and just to deal with it because that’s what I’m used to, that’s what I was taught,” she admitted.

Keir Starmer has faced renewed calls for Britain to pay slavery reparations which could far exceed £200bn as the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chgom) in Samoa gets underway.

A group of 15 Caribbean governments, as part of the Caribbean Community or ‘Caricom’ organisation, have all agreed to table reparations on the Chgom agenda when the group meets.

Defying the UK, with Sir Keir saying he does not want to discuss the matter, a draft communique for the summit places it firmly on the agenda, reading: “Heads, noting calls for discussions on reparatory justice with regard to the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans and chattel enslavement… agreed that the time has come for a meaningful, truthful and respectful conversation towards forging a common future based on equity.”

All three candidates for the position of Commonwealth Secretary-General role have supported reparations for transatlantic slavery and colonialism.

The Earthshot Prize gives five finalists £1 million each to help grow their environmental projects.

A winner is selected from each category or environmental challenge: Protect and Restore Nature, Clean Our Air, Revive Our Oceans, Build A Waste-Free World, and Fix Our Climate.

Both finalists and winners receive dedicated mentorship, resources and support during the year-long Earthshot Prize Fellowship Programme.

In 2021, Costa Rica won the Protect and Restore Nature award.

Since then, the country’s Cocos Island National Park and its surrounding marine protected area expanded to 26 times its size, and the Bicentennial Marine Area covers over 106,000 square kilometres.

The fourth annual celebration of the Prince of Wales’s Earthshot prize will be held in Cape Town, South Africa, next month.

This year, Earthshot Week will be hosted by actor and humanitarian Nomzamo Mbatha from November 4 to November 7.

She will be joined by fellow Earthshot Global Ambassador, Australian photographer Robert Irwin, the son of late wildlife conservationist, Steve Irwin.

The award ceremony, taking place on November 6, will be hosted by Grammy, Emmy and Tony award winner Billy Porter and award-winning television presenter Bonang Matheba.

Mr Porter said: “It’s an honour to co-host this year’s Earthshot Prize Awards and help to celebrate this year’s inspiring innovators working to create a better future for everyone. I’m so inspired by the Earthshot community, and I can’t wait to be part of an evening that celebrates creativity, human ingenuity, and artistry in all its different forms.”

Stars set to perform include the Ndlovu Youth Choir, Grammy award winner, Lebo M, Grammy nominated artist and producer, Davido, artist Diamond Platnumz, and DJ and producer Uncle Waffles.

The ceremony and green carpet hosted by media personality Ebuka, Obi-Uchendu, and rapper and TV presenter Moozlie will be available to watch live globally on The Earthshot Prize’s YouTube channel.

On top of that, supermodel and television host Heidi Klum, actor and activist Nina Dobrev, supermodel and beauty entrepreneur Winnie Harlow and artist and actor Tobe Nwigwe will join the broadcast to announce the winners.

King Charles said the Commonwealth mattered “a great deal” his late mother Queen Elizabeth II, who was seen as a unifying figure among the body.

Charles attended his first Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, or Chogm as Britain’s head of state yesterday, where he indirectly acknowledged calls from some of Britain’s former colonies for a reckoning over its role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

Britain’s handling of its involvement in the trans-Atlantic slave trade is seen by many observers as a litmus test for the Commonwealth’s adaptation to a modern-day world, as other European nations and some British institutions have started to own up to their role in the trade.

The UK has never formally apologized for its role in the trade, in which millions of African citizens were kidnapped and transported to plantations in the Caribbean and Americas over several centuries, enriching many individuals and companies.

Studies estimate Britain would owe between hundreds of millions and trillions of dollars in compensation to the descendants of slaves.

None of us can change the past but we can commit with all our hearts to learning its lessons and to finding creative ways to write the inequalities that endure,” said Charles.

The Tower of London is to be illuminated with a poignant light show in remembrance of those who lost their lives in the First and Second World Wars.

Visitors to the immersive after-dark experience will be invited inside the walls of the famous fortress next month to see the historic White Tower transformed with moving images reflecting on the conflicts.

The Luxmuralis sound and light installation, Poppy Fields at the Tower of London, will run for nine nights, from November 8-16, including Remembrance Day.

Falling poppy petals, silhouettes of soldiers and the World War One military medal “For Bravery in the Field” will be among the artwork lighting up the Tower, accompanied by music and poetry recordings.

Ticketholders will also be granted special access to see the Crown Jewels without the usual crowds, and learn about their removal from the Tower during both world wars.