Prince Harry, Meghan Markle Compared To Nelson Mandela By Activist's Granddaughter
Nelson Mandela's granddaughter drew parallels between Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's quest for autonomy within the royal family and her grandfather's struggle to "find his own voice" after fleeing an arranged marriage.
Ndileka Mandela made the comments on the BBC's "Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg" after being asked if she believed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were victims of racism.
The 58-year-old activist said she "cannot speak to" whether the couple's children were discriminated against since she does not have "first-hand information." But she emphasized the importance of allowing Prince Harry and Markle to voice their concerns about royal life.
"I believe that Harry and Meghan had to find their own voice, in a similar way that grandad had to find his own voice when he had to run away from an arranged marriage," she said of her grandfather fleeing to Johannesburg in 1941 after learning his guardian had set up an arranged marriage.
"So they should be given, like any other person, room to voice out whatever their misgivings are," she added.
She urged for room to be given for different journeys in life, drawing a comparison to how her late grandfather's choices played a crucial role in shaping South Africa.
Her comments came after an alleged "translation error" in the Dutch version of Omid Scobie's book "Endgame" saw King Charles III and Kate Middleton getting named as the royals who allegedly raised concerns about Prince Archie's skin color before he was born.
The book was temporarily pulled from shelves in the Netherlands, but Piers Morgan later named the royals on his talk show.
Earlier this year, an Australian newspaper reported that Ndileka allegedly criticized Prince Harry and Markle's use of her grandfather's legacy for their Netflix documentary series, "Live to Lead."
The Australian quoted Ndileka as saying that people "have used his legacy because they know his name sells -- Harry and Meghan are no different from them."
However, Ndileka later said she was misquoted and expressed admiration for the couple's commitment to defending the less privileged.
The Australian initially quoted her as accusing Prince Harry and Markle of profiting from Nelson's legacy, a statement she later refuted in an article for The Independent.
Meanwhile, the Sussexes have not publicly addressed the controversy surrounding Scobie's book.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Dutch translator Saskia Peeters insisted that the names of the royals were in the manuscript she received.
But in a chat with ITV's "This Morning," Scobie denied the inclusion of the names in the submitted manuscript. He expressed frustration over the error and emphasized an ongoing investigation.
