Elton John calls for Prince Harry to follow Princess Diana’s footsteps and help put an end to Aids
The singer rules said a younger face was needed to engage the youth in the global fight against the virus
SIR ELTON John challenged Prince Harry yesterday to follow in his mother’s footsteps and help put an end to Aids.
The Candle in the Wind singer, 69, told the Aids 2016 conference that the young prince was a “powerful ally to the cause”.
He said Harry could speed up the end of the disease and that he himself was now too old to reach the people that needed to hear their message.
Sir Elton told the conference, in Durban, South Africa: “The young Princess Diana was really touched by the global fight against Aids, and rather than remain silent about the burden, she chose to give voice to the voiceless, to be brave and embrace love and by doing so she changed the way the world saw AIDS forever.
“Prince Harry has his mother’s compassion, his mother’s wonderful sense of responsibility, her caring and her determination to make the world a better place.
“There are not many people given that gift - Nelson Mandela is one, Elizabeth Taylor is one.
“We need people to identify with young people.
“Prince Harry – you are the person that can take this disease forward and help it end quicker.”
Sir Elton said he was getting old “like a piece of Stilton” - then quipped "Stilton John" - and said someone younger was needed to engage teens.
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Earlier, the Prince, wearing a suit with an open necked shirt and an International Aids Society badge, said we risked becoming complacent about HIV – both in Africa and the UK.
He said: “HIV remains the number one cause of death amongst adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa.
“In my own country, infection rates are still rising amongst important groups despite the availability of instant testing and universal access to treatment.
“So it is time for a new generation of leaders to step forward.”
The Prince recalled the famous day when his mother shocked the world by being photographed with an Aids patient.
He said: “When my mother held the hand of a man dying of Aids in an East London hospital, no one would have imagined that just over a quarter of a century later treatment would exist that could see HIV-positive people live full, healthy, loving lives.
“But we now face a new risk - the risk of complacency.
“As people with HIV live longer, Aids is a topic that has drifted from the headlines.
“And with that drift of attention, we risk a real drift of funding and of action to beat the virus.
“In helping young people to fight HIV we would not just be ending this epidemic, we would change the direction of history for an entire generation.”
The Prince was at the 18,000 attendee conference representing his charity Sentabale, which works with children with HIV in Lesotho.
It was announced last month that Prince Harry is to focus part of his public work on highlighting the fight against Aids.
Last week he was photographed having an HIV test.
Before the speech he met 25 young ambassadors from around the world who have been specially flown in for the conference.
The Prince wrote on the UNAIDS protest wall at the front of the Convention Centre.
He wrote “Get Tested! Why wouldn’t you? Harry” in red marker pen.
He met a group of young ambassadors including transgender Romesa Roy William from Pakistan, an outreach worker and volunteer, who said: “He told me ‘you are doing a good job and I hope you do more in the future.’
“He seemed concerned.
“He was also very humble.
“I told him that in Pakistan it’s not easy to be open.
“Harry is royal and that’s a big thing.
“It’s important to have celebrities and royals who can raise awareness.”
Romesa added: “He was very handsome.”
He also met smitten social worker Ashwin Nail, 24, a founding member of “Empower”, a youth-led women NGO of professionals in Goa.
She said: It was a great experience, a real privilege to meet him.
“To give a platform to us as the voice of youth, it’s an opportunity to spread the message around the world.”