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Meghan Markle speaks publicly about being 'woman of colour' in trip to South African township

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have kick-started their royal tour of South Africa with the Duchess of Sussex speaking out about being a “woman of colour”.

The duchess used her first public event of the tour - talking to teenage girls at the Nyanga township in Cape Town - to highlight her mixed-race heritage.

The duchess said: “On one personal note, may I just say that while I’m here with my husband as a member of the Royal Family, I want you to know from me I am here with you as a mother, as a wife, as a woman, as a woman of colour and as your sister.”

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex attended an event to learn about the work of the Justice Desk, an advocacy group for human rights.

Harry also spoke, and said it was “incredibly important” they started their 10-day visit in a South African township to learn about life in black settlements – which have seen increasing amounts of violence against women.

Meghan dances with a local during the engagement at the Nyanga township in Cape Town. [Photo: Getty]
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, holds hands and dances with a local at the Nyanga township in Cape Town while Prince Harry looks on. [Photo: Getty]

Meghan made the point of telling the young women and others from the community it was her “first time” in South Africa adding “you’re incredible and so powerful, because you’re all powerful”.

The couple’s son Archie, who is with them on the tour, was not present.

READ MORE: Harry and Meghan reveal baby Archie will join them in South Africa

Meghan, 38, and Harry, 35, were pictured interacting with and hugging locals, with the new mum receiving a warm embrace from one child.

Meghan was all smiles, dancing with locals as Prince Harry and crowds looked on.

Meghan dances with a local while dancing in Cape Town. [Photo: Getty]
Meghan dances with a local at the Nyanga township. [Photo: Getty]
The Duchess of Sussex joins in with dancers as she leaves the Nyanga Township in Cape Town, South Africa, on the first day of their tour of Africa. (Photo by Dominic Lipinski/PA Images via Getty Images)
Meghan laughs as she leaves the Nyanga Township. [Photo: Getty]
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA - SEPTEMBER 23: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex visit a Justice Desk initiative, a workshop that teaches children about their rights, self-awareness and safety, in Nyanga township, during their royal tour of South Africa on September 23, 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo by Samir Hussein/WireImage)
The Sussexes visit a Justice Desk initiative, a workshop that teaches children about their rights, self-awareness and safety, in Nyanga township. [Photo: Getty]
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA - SEPTEMBER 23: Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex visit a workshop that teaches children about their rights, self-awareness and safety during their royal tour of South Africa on September 23, 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa. (Photo by Samir Hussein/WireImage)
The Sussexes and a child at the Justice Desk initiative in Nyanga township. [Photo: Getty]

The couple were cheered on by schoolchildren waving the national flag as they arrived at Nyanga Methodist Church, where they watched dancers perform in traditional costume.

The couple shared an intimate moment, which was caught on camera, as Harry adjusted his wife’s hair.

For the engagement, Meghan wore a pair of Castañer wedges and a monochrome printed wrap dress by Mayamiko, a sustainable and ethical womanswear label set up by founder Paola Masperi after she did extensive travel in Malawi, southeast Africa.

READ MORE: Shop Meghan Markle’s £69 African dress worn on day one of the royal tour

Meghan makes a speech during the engagement at the Nyanga township in Cape Town. [Photo: Getty]
Meghan makes a speech at the Nyanga township in Cape Town. [Photo: Getty]
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrive at the Nyanga Township in Cape Town, South Africa, for a visit to a workshop that teaches children about their rights, self-awareness and safety, on the first day of their tour of Africa. (Photo by Dominic Lipinski/PA Images via Getty Images)
The Sussexes arriving at the Nyanga township in Cape Town. [Photo: Dominic Lipinski/PA Images via Getty Images]

READ MORE: Meghan Markle lands in South Africa wearing stylish £133 slingbacks

Later on Monday, to complete the first day of their tour, they will be touring the District Six Museum to learn about its work to reunite community members forcibly relocated during the apartheid era, before joining in a community cooking activity with former District Six residents at the nearby Homecoming Centre.

This 10-day royal tour, taken at the request of the Foreign Office, marks the first the Sussexes have undertaken with their son.

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA - SEPTEMBER 23: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex meet young wellwishers as they visit a Justice Desk initiative in Nyanga township, during their royal tour of South Africa on September 23, 2019 in Cape Town, South Africa. The Justice Desk initiative teaches children about their rights and provides self-defence classes and female empowerment training to young girls in the community. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
The Sussexes meet children at the Justice Desk initiative in Nyanga township. [Photo: Getty]

Following a couple of days in Cape Town attending engagements with Meghan – and possibly Archie – Prince Harry will then visit Botswana, Angola and Malawi while Meghan and Archie remain in South Africa.

The tour serves as an opportunity for the Duke and Duchess to highlight “many of the causes that they have been involved with for many years,” a statement from the couple’s communications secretary ahead of the tour said.

Further tour engagements for the Sussexes will focus on “community, grassroots leadership, women’s and girls’ rights, mental health, HIV/AIDS and the environment”, an Instagram post from Sussex Royal said on 6 September.

This is not Harry and Meghan’s first royal tour. The pair completed an earlier royal tour in autumn last year, travelling to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga. The Duchess’s pregnancy with Archie was announced during the trip.