Prince Harry Visits Children’s Centre in Georgetown, Guyana, Run by Unification Church Member

Prince Harry visited a children’s home in Georgetown, Guyana, on the last day of his Caribbean tour, which the Standard reported on 5 December 2016. The prince spent an hour at the Joshua House Children’s Centre, a facility run by Gladys Accra of the Unification Church, also known as the Moonies.

The centre cares for young people who have been abused, neglected or are living in poverty. The source says it is referred about 50 children, aged seven to 17, through a child protection programme when they are considered at risk. Harry spoke with some of the children during the visit.

The Unification Church, named after its founder Sun Myung Moon, has in the past faced accusations of brainwashing and scamming its followers. The source does not report any findings on those accusations in this article.

Greg Quinn, Britain’s High Commissioner to Guyana, defended the visit and the work done at the centre. He said Accra was “helping 50 kids who would otherwise not have a great standard of life,” and added, “I find it hard to question what she’s doing in any way because she’s doing very good work.” He described the work of Accra, her husband and her family as “amazing.”

The article notes that the church was well known for its mass wedding ceremonies, in which Accra and her husband, Clifford, took part. A photo caption refers to a 2013 mass wedding ceremony held after Moon’s death.

Harry’s visit was the final stop of a 15-day tour of the Caribbean. During the visit, he held a question-and-answer session with some of the teenagers at the centre. Asked what it is like to be a prince, he replied: “Good and bad, there’s lots of privileges of course you get from when you’re born, but with privilege comes responsibility.”

Source: Read the original report