Sentebale's chairwoman Sophie Chandauka criticised the unannounced presence of Meghan Markle, with Prince Harry, at a Sentebale event. Photo / AP
Sentebale's chairwoman Sophie Chandauka criticised the unannounced presence of Meghan Markle, with Prince Harry, at a Sentebale event. Photo / AP
An African Aids charity co-founded by Britain’s Prince Harry says it has launched legal proceedings against him for “reputational harm”, after a bitter dispute about its management.
Harry helped found the Sentebale charity in 2006 in honour of his late mother, Princess Diana. But he quit the institution last yearamid a bitter governance dispute with its chairwoman.
“Sentebale has commenced legal proceedings in the High Court of England and Wales,” the charity told AFP.
“The charity seeks the court’s intervention, protection and restitution following a co-ordinated adverse media campaign conducted since March 25, 2025, that has caused operational disruption and reputational harm to the charity, its leadership and its strategic partners,” it said.
Online court filings show the prince is a defendant in the case alongside Mark Dyer, who was also previously a trustee of Sentebale.
Prince Harry “categorically” rejected the defamation claim, a spokesperson said Friday.
“As Sentebale’s co-founder and a founding trustee, they categorically reject these offensive and damaging claims. It is extraordinary that charitable funds are now being used to pursue legal action against the very people who built and supported the organisation for nearly two decades.”
The case type is described as “Media and Communication – Part 7 Claim – Defamation – libel and slander”. Sentebale filed it on March 24.
“The proceedings have been brought against Prince Harry and Mark Dyer, identified through evidence as the architects of that adverse media campaign, which has had significant viral impact and triggered an onslaught of cyber bullying directed at the charity and its leadership,” Sentebale said.
In August 2025, Britain’s Charity Commission pointed to “mismanagement” at the charity.
But it found no evidence of “bullying” – a charge that the organisation’s chairwoman Sophie Chandauka levelled at Harry in March 2025.
The charity was launched to help young people with HIV and Aids in Lesotho and later Botswana.
Harry, the youngest son of Britain’s King Charles III, and co-founder Prince Seeiso of Lesotho announced last year they were resigning from the charity, after the trustees quit.
The trustees walked out when Chandauka refused their demand to step down.
Dr Sophie Chandauka is the voluntary chairwoman of Sentebale. Photo / Getty Images
Bitter dispute
After an inquiry, the Charity Commission said it had “found no evidence of widespread or systemic bullying or harassment, including misogyny or misogynoir [prejudice against black women] at the charity”.
But it “criticised all parties to the dispute for allowing it to play out publicly”, saying the “damaging internal dispute” had “severely impacted the charity’s reputation”.
It found there was “a lack of clarity in delegations”, which led to “mismanagement in the administration of the charity”, and issued the organisation with a plan to “address governance weaknesses”.
Chandauka, who was appointed to the voluntary post in 2023, said she “appreciated” the commission’s conclusions.
She said the findings “confirm the governance concerns I raised privately in February 2025”.
Speaking to British media after accusing the prince of trying to force her out, Chandauka criticised Harry for his decision to bring a Netflix camera crew to a fundraiser in 2024.
She also objected to an unplanned appearance by his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex at the event.
The accusations were a fresh blow for the prince, who kept only a handful of his private patronages, including with Sentebale, after splitting with the British royal family in 2020.
He left Britain to live in North America with his wife and children.
Harry chose the name Sentebale as a tribute to Diana, who died in a Paris car crash in 1997 when the prince was 12.
It means “forget me not” in the Sesotho language and is also used to say goodbye.
The court filing comes less than a fortnight after Harry’s case against a British tabloid publisher wrapped up in the High Court.
The proceedings against the publisher of the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday are the third case brought by the Duke of Sussex in his acrimonious legal battle with the British press.
Harry and six other claimants accuse the publisher of spying on them, including placing listening devices in cars and homes. Associated Newspapers has strongly denied the accusations.
