Princess Caroline's two-week humanitarian field trip to Africa - 2007

[tbhrc]

Press release from AMADE

Press Release

HER ROYAL HIGHNESS THE PRINCESS OF HANOVER VISITS AFRICA’S CHILDREN


The President of AMADE Mondiale will visit the African affiliates and other
partners of Her child-advocacy organisation in Niger, Burundi, Congo and South Africa on a two-week humanitarian field trip


29 January 2007

Monte Carlo, MONACO – Honoured with the UNICEF Children’s Champion Award in May
2006, H.R.H. The Princess of Hanover (née H.S.H. Princess Caroline of Monaco) continues Her humanitarian commitment to the world’s most vulnerable children. Accompanied by AMADE Mondiale’s Secretary General Mr. Francis Kasasa, She will tour Africa to promote the rights of the
child, their protection and their well-being.


AMADE Mondiale was founded in 1963 by Princess Grace of Monaco and is based in Monaco. The non-profit organization, chaired since 1993 by H.R.H. The Princess of Hanover, seeks to promote and protect children's rights on an international level; it develops and supports
humanitarian aid programmes around the globe, and fosters ethical and legal reflection in the domain of the rights of the child.


All around the world AMADE Mondiale and its local branches advocate for children’s wellbeing and the protection of their rights wherever these are intellectually, morally or physically endangered, without distinction of gender, race, religion, language, culture, social background or
political opinion.

During Her field trip to Africa, The Princess will visit the health projects established in Niger in 2005 when AMADE Mondiale responded to the UN’s call for emergency relief following a severe nutritional crisis. In 2006 AMADE continued its commitment to the Sahel country’s children by
providing low-cost medication to combat the effects of a regionally common incurable blood disorder.


The organization’s national branch in Burundi was founded in 1995 to provide global care for orphans and other vulnerable children, medical and psycho-social care for children living with HIV/AIDS and to facilitate the social reinsertion of former child soldiers.


Since 1998 AMADE Congo/DRC provides education through various primary schools and nutritional rehabilitation programmes for children of the rural areas. In 2003, a multi-purpose centre was established to offer young girls and mother professional training and income-generating skills in
order to reduce the level of their dependence.


In South Africa, The Princess will visit partner projects financed by AMADE Mondiale and the Monegasque Government in the domains of palliative paediatric care, rural education, early childhood development and plastic surgery on children with facial malformations. The tour will end with a fundraising gala for the benefit of the Little Ones that desperately need our help.

[RADKER18]

Thanks tbhrc for the info really great that she is going to Africa.

[Ianna]

Thanks for the information!

It's great to hear that! Princess has pointed out very important issues in her Strasbourg's speech, and now she'll make the action! Wish her lots of successes!

[memoo]

I think it shows a lot about her character that she takes on the fights of children who can not or who are not allowed to stand up for themselves. It is amazing that someone who has so much, can remember the people that have so little. I hope she has a very safe and very successful trip!

[supernova]

It is a wonderful thing she is doing, after taking care and growth 3 of her children to adulthood, she is taking care of orher children, that is a way of life...

[iloveroyals]

I think she has reached a stage in her life (maybe after her trip to the Philippines, where she had first-hand experience of utter poverty and exploitation) where she has become aware of the dreadful discrepancy between the very rich and the very poor, between her childrens' lives and these children's lives, and she has decided to "give back" for having been born into a life of privilege. Among other reasons, that may be why she sent Andrea there too. That could also explain her more subdued appearance of late.

[rosana]

I read in Hola Caroline was visiting a hospital in Nigeria.Do you have any pics?

[tbhrc]

Here is the first pic I could find, it's from Diez Minutos - Pic - Caroline in Nigeria




Here is an article from Libello - translated with google:

The Princess Caroline on the ground for the world AMADE
Chaired since 1993 by the Princess Caroline, the world AMADE works on the international level in favour of the rights of the children and their protection. After her intervention noticed with the Council of Europe, the Princess is currently on the ground in Africa.

Link



And just another article from Le Monde - also translated with google

Caroline princess of Monaco pays a visit deprived in Katanga, in the south-east of the democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where the world Association of the friends of the childhood which it chairs finance several projects, according to radio operator Okapi, sponsored by UNO.

Link

[iloveroyals]

Thanks, tbhrc, for the links. On the picture, it looks like Caroline has been crying. I know she cries easily, and the sight of these poor children probably overwhelmed her. I am very impressed by her commitment and dedication. It obviously comes from the heart, and it's a cause she embraced from day one, in her very early twenties, not a charity mission she took up to increase her popularity or status. I wonder how it affects her view of her own privileges or her children's privileges. Andrea is following in her footsteps (although I am a bit doubtful about the motivation behind it or his own personal commitment to his mother's cause), I wonder about Charlotte and Pierre. They are still very young, but so was Caroline when she started.

[brother]

Originally Posted by iloveroyals

Thanks, tbhrc, for the links. On the picture, it looks like Caroline has been crying. I know she cries easily, and the sight of these poor children probably overwhelmed her. I am very impressed by her commitment and dedication. It obviously comes from the heart, and it's a cause she embraced from day one, in her very early twenties, not a charity mission she took up to increase her popularity or status. I wonder how it affects her view of her own privileges or her children's privileges. Andrea is following in her footsteps (although I am a bit doubtful about the motivation behind it or his own personal commitment to his mother's cause), I wonder about Charlotte and Pierre. They are still very young, but so was Caroline when she started.

I also doubt andrea's real motivations in doing this humanitarian trips. As far as his siblings, Charlotte is more into the glamour, glitzy part of life. i think she'll do charity if she really has to but something tells me that she doesn't like to be arround sick, dirty and disadvantaged children. I think she's more into Channel fashion shows and movie screenings. With the trio we either have publicity stunts or scandalous razzi pics

[Tosca]

It obviously comes from the heart, and it's a cause she embraced from day one, in her very early twenties

,

Sorry, but I can't recall of any pics of her doing charity work when she was young, apart from visiting hospitals in Monaco or attending the Rose Ball or the Red Cross Ball.
Instead I recall of an article from the 70's where she stated she was planning to leave for Africa and volunteer in order to save wild animals, but as far as I know she never did...

[rrinvan]

Originally Posted by Tosca

,

Sorry, but I can't recall of any pics of her doing charity work when she was young, apart from visiting hospitals in Monaco or attending the Rose Ball or the Red Cross Ball.
Instead I recall of an article from the 70's where she stated she was planning to leave for Africa and volunteer in order to save wild animals, but as far as I know she never did...

I suppose her mother's death made her realize that Grace's charitable commitments and activities have to go on, and that she is the appropriate person to do so. She understood that being the First Lady of Monaco, there are two sides -- the public persona of glamour representing Monaco in balls and royal events and then there's the charitable entity that shows compassion and action for the less fortunate countries and citizens.

[Tosca]

Originally Posted by royrrules

I suppose her mother's death made her realize that Grace's charitable commitments and activities have to go on, and that she is the appropriate person to do so. She understood that being the First Lady of Monaco, there are two sides -- the public persona of glamour representing Monaco in balls and royal events and then there's the charitable entity that shows compassion and action for the less fortunate countries and citizens.

I was referring to Caro when she was in her 20's, that's back in the 70's when Grace was still alive. At that time Caroline seemed to be more inclined to attend discos and parties rather than doing any charity work, but I may be wrong...

[iceflower]

Here is a clipping with three more pics of Caroline visiting the kindergarten AMADE supports, meeting women on the streets and meeting politicians:

Caroline in Africa

[iloveroyals]

Beautiful scarf ! I am jealous... It's the "in" color in France for scarves.

I'll try to find either articles or pictures relating to her charity work. Maybe I was confused and only saw pictures of her at UNICEF or UNESCO conferences (1981 or 1982, with Fr. Mitterrand)or walking with boyscouts and girlscouts with P. Junot. Somehow, I thought it was "a walk for children", and the book written by her estranged cousin, "Palace" refers to that work too. (Was published in 1986). I'll check my sources and get back to you. Or maybe my interpretation of "charity work" is too broad. Thanks for the pics, iceflower !

[rrinvan]

Originally Posted by Tosca

I was referring to Caro when she was in her 20's, that's back in the 70's when Grace was still alive. At that time Caroline seemed to be more inclined to attend discos and parties rather than doing any charity work, but I may be wrong...

Exactly, Tosca. My entry earlier complemented your earlier entry -- Caroline matured after Grace died. She picked up Grace's sense of charity when the latter passed away tragically.

[Horseygal]

I wonder if there is a way that regular citizens can get involved with AMADE - obviously, we can't travel to the countries they represent, but I wonder if there are campaigns to get involved with.

[iloveroyals]

I got back to my sources. The weekly magazine (now defunct) "Jours de France" shows Caroline presenting a conference at UNESCO, in the spring of 1979. She was finishing her bachelor's degree in philosophy (says the magazine) and "spending all of her free time to preparing for the International Year of Childhood. She attends all the meetings, all the events and takes initiatives that will contribute to the success of the Year" .There is a picture of her with a missionary nun in "A work session for the International Year of Childhood."

In a later issue , a picture of her at the Conference has the subtitle : "First official role : delegate to UNESCO". The theme was : "What world are we leaving to our children ?" One of the comments goes :"She was the only student there. For her, it was no mere symbolic representation"(...) Caroline stayed to all the debates. They lasted 3 days."

Also in 1979, (with her husband Ph. Junot), in the spring or summer, she led more than 700 children on "The World March of the Children", (called on by the Organization of the United Nations), through the streets of Monaco. Each kilometer raised money. That year, she presided the Monaco section of the "Year of Childhood". The magazine "Hola" reported at some length on this march with many pictures. She is photographed walking, carrying a child in her arms, singing along with the group.

I forgot. Her cousin, Baron Christian de Massy, in his book "Palaces" states that she wrote an article for the magazine he launched, on "UNICEF's work for children", in 1977.

"Starting in 1981", according to "Caroline de Monaco", by Bertrand Meyer-Stabley, "she has been in charge of an association called "Youth, I am listening", whose main goal is to listen to the young, whatever their problem may be, by phone. She visits once a year. (...) She listens, very attentive, asks questions, raises issues. (..) She speaks at length with each one, makes intense eye contact, spends a lot of time with each, speaks to each individually apart."

[Tosca]

Thanks for the infos, iloveroyals! I'd forgot about Caroline attending that conference at UNESCO in 1979. However up until her last year's charity trip to Manila, I hadn't seen her pictured while mingling with poor children and carrying one of those children in her arms like Princess Diana used to. Or even like her sister Stephanie did when she was photographed with some kids affected with the Down syndrome.
I thought she was obsessed with perfection and for this reason, she found it improper to pose along with the poor or the handicapped.

[iloveroyals]

Tosca, thanks for your response. I also think that there was a natural progression in how she evolved in her commitment, reflecting her growing maturity in how one deals with and is affected by others, "how much one can take", especially with those more unfortunate than us, and it is natural that a younger girl or woman, at a more narcissistic stage, would not want to be associated with the poor and the hungry in a kind of chaotic environment such as Africa (as opposed to, say, visiting a well-managed hospital, where it is safe, where you are still protected from true, utter misery, and the visit is a short, rather formal one. That's why I feel that her progression has been organic and has to be sincere: first, her belonging to the girl scouts, leading youth groups, then presiding the youth association for troubled youth, then studying child psychology (I think Jours de France got it wrong there, everybody else says it was child psychology, not philosophy) while preparing for the UNESCO conference with missionary nuns, then giving the conference, then leading the walk for the children, and finally going out on the field. I believe that the evolution was somewhat similar in P. Diana. If I remember correctly, it was only in her thirties that she ventured onto the minefield areas and to India. That's why I find Andrea's sudden trip to the Philippines kind of like being thrown into the water and being told to swim. I am not criticizing, either him or his mother, far from it. I am just saying that the consistency of her interest has grown as she raised her children, and I am sure she is really moved by the disparity between her children's lives and these children (which is probably one of the reasons she sent Andrea there, to give him a bit of a reality check). I still think she cried a lot, from the picture of her with the very dark and big sunglasses (although of course it could be the sun in Africa, although when vacationing in Kenya, she never wore such glasses, from the pictures I have seen.) On her first visit, she wrote a diary, which she published, and said she cried.