Princess Kate returns to her royal duties

Britain’s Catherine, Princess of Wales attended her first major royal occasion since ending chemotherapy, the news agency AFP reported.  

She smiled and clapped alongside her husband Prince William at the Festival of Remembrance commemorative concert at the Royal Albert Hall in London. The royal couple was joined by the head of state King Charles III.

Queen Camilla missed Britain’s annual remembrance weekend events to honor fallen service personnel while she recovers from a chest infection, Buckingham Palace said Saturday.

The wife of King Charles III was due to join the royal family at a “Festival of Remembrance” at London’s Royal Albert Hall on Saturday night. The 77-year-old was also scheduled to honor the war dead at the Remembrance Sunday ceremony at the Cenotaph war memorial, a major event for Britain’s royals, the next day.

“Following doctors’ guidance to ensure a full recovery from a seasonal chest infection, and to protect others from any potential risk, Her Majesty will not attend this weekend’s Remembrance events,” the statement said, adding that she was greatly disappointed.

The king was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer in February but he has gradually returned to public duties after receiving treatment, and recently completed a trip to Australia and Samoa.

Kate underwent her own treatment for an unspecified type of cancer that was detected after abdominal surgery earlier in the year. She said in September that it had been a difficult year but expressed relief that she had completed chemotherapy.

King Charles faced a confrontation from Indigenous senator Lidia Thorpe during his visit to Australia. On October 21, Thorpe told him that he was “not her king” and demanded a treaty between Australia’s First Nations and its government.

After King Charles delivered a significant speech at Australia’s Parliament House, Thorpe confronted him, accusing the Commonwealth of committing “genocide” against Indigenous people.

The Australian senator expressed her strong disapproval by declaring that Charles was not their sovereign and demanded the return of their land, claiming it had been taken from them.

“You are not our King you are not Sovereign… you have committed genocide against our people. Give us our land back. Give us what you stole from us… Our babies, Our people. You destroyed our land,” she said.

“Give us a treaty – we want a treaty with this country… This is not your land, this is not your land, you are not my King you are not our King,” Thorpe added.

As she was escorted out of the hall, she shouted that a treaty between the First Nations people and the government was needed.

Throughout the Royal tour of Australia, Charles and Camilla encountered smaller protests from groups supporting First Nations’ resistance to colonisation. Protesters had been seen displaying banners reading “decolonise” at several events.

The Independent cited sources who indicated that King Charles, despite the confrontation, remained calm.

Earlier that day, Charles and Camilla were warmly received at the national war memorial, where they met hundreds of well-wishers, including a sneezing alpaca, in a lighthearted moment.

What did King Charles say?

In his speech to the Australian parliament, King Charles spoke about his long-standing relationship with the country, which began when he first visited as a teenager. He mentioned how his time studying in the Outback shaped him, leaving a lasting impression on his life.

“Throughout my life, Australia’s First Nations peoples have done me the great honour of sharing, so generously, their stories and cultures. I can only say how much my own experience has been shaped and strengthened by such traditional wisdom,” Charles said.