Solemn Dutch royals attend funeral for Britain’s queen Elizabeth

DutchNews, September 19, 2022 

Princess Beatrix (L), king Willem-Alexander and queen Maxima leave after
the service. Photo: Ben Stansall / POOL / AFP

Dutch king Willem-Alexander, queen Maxima and princess Beatrix had front row seats at the funeral ceremony held for British queen Elizabeth at Westminster Abbey in London on Monday. 

The Dutch royals were among a host of kings, queens, presidents and prime ministers to attend the event, ten days after Elizabeth died at the age of 96. 

Oranjes op prominente plek bij uitvaart Queen https://t.co/G7wk0Jj5wg pic.twitter.com/tod7c0wIOx

— RTL Nieuws (@RTLnieuws) September 19, 2022

Royalty expert Pieter Klein Beernink told the Telegraaf that the Dutch family had been given such a prominent position in front of the flag-draped coffin because of the close ties between the two families. 

Princess Beatrix, the former Dutch queen who abdicated in favour of her son in 2013 at the age of 75, would often cross the channel incognito to have lunch or dinner with Elizabeth, Klein Beernink said. 

A black mourning pennant was hoisted above the Noordeinde palace in The Hague as a mark of respect for the British queen, who visited the Netherlands several times during her 70-year reign. 

Vandaag vindt de uitvaart van Koningin Elizabeth II plaats. Op Paleis Noordeinde is de rouwwimpel gehesen. De Koning, Koningin Máxima en Prinses Beatrix zijn bij de uitvaartplechtigheid aanwezig. pic.twitter.com/rvnULpWKwa

— Koninklijk Huis (@koninklijkhuis) September 19, 2022

The Dutch royals will also attend a much smaller ceremony at Windsor Castle later on Monday, broadcaster NOS said. 

Embassy 

The British embassy in The Hague and the consulate were both closed on Monday, which was a bank holiday in Britain, but dozens of well-wishers have left flowers outside the building.

Photo: Dutch News

Over 2,000 people, including prime minister Mark Rutte, signed the condolence book at the embassy and there are also books available for signing at Anglican churches dotted throughout the country. 

The book at the Anglican church on the Kinderhuissingel in Haarlem, for example, will be open for a few more weeks. 

Monday’s ceremony has dominated the Dutch as well as the British media, with live blogs on most news websites and coverage from the funeral procession and ceremony on television.

Commonwealth should 'acknowledge' past wrongs, says Prince Harry

Yahoo – AFP, July 6, 2020

Harry, Duke of Sussex, seen here in conversation with Formula 1 champion Lewis
 Hamilton, had already spoken out last week against institutional racism (AFP
 Photo/PETER NICHOLLS)

London (AFP) - Prince Harry has urged the Commonwealth, which his grandmother heads, to acknowledge its uncomfortable colonial past, in video extracts published on Monday.

The 35-year-old royal and his wife, Meghan, joined a video conference call with leaders organised by the Queen's Commonwealth Trust (QCT) from their base in the United States.

The sessions were set up in response to the growing Black Lives Matter movement, sparked by the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, during a US police arrest.

Harry last week outlined his personal commitment to tackling institutional racism, saying it had "no place" in society but was still too widespread.

On the July 1 call, posted on the QCT website, he said: "When you look across the Commonwealth, there is no way that we can move forward unless we acknowledge the past.

"So many people have done such an incredible job of acknowledging the past and trying to right those wrongs but I think we all acknowledge there is so much more still to do.

"It's not going to be easy and in some cases it's not going to be comfortable, but it needs to be done, because, guess what, everybody benefits."

Queen Elizabeth II is the head of the Commonwealth, a non-political organisation of 54 countries, most of which have links to the British Empire.

It comprises 2.4 billion people -- a quarter of the world's population -- of which 60 percent are aged under 30.

The QCT was set up to give younger people from member nations a platform to share ideas and insights.

The chief executive of the QCT, Nicola Brentnall, has said the body is studying how the Commonwealth's colonial past and its legacy should shape its future.

Harry and Meghan stepped down from frontline royal duties this year and have set up a non-profit organisation focusing on the promoting of mental health, education and well-being.

Meghan, a mixed-race US former actress, has previously talked about her own personal experience of racism and unconscious bias.

Former army officer Harry has also complained about the "racial undertones" of media coverage of his wife.

The couple are president and vice-president respectively of the QCT.

Harry and Meghan: royal statements

Yahoo – AFP, January 18, 2020

In this file photo taken on July 10, 2018 Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (R)
puts her hand on Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex's back; Britain's Prince Harry
and his wife Meghan will give up their titles and stop receiving public funds (AFP
Photo/Tolga AKMEN)

London (AFP) - Here are the two statements from Queen Elizabeth II and Buckingham Palace confirming that Prince Harry and his wife Meghan have agreed to give up their royal titles and public funding.

Statement from Her Majesty The Queen

Following many months of conversations and more recent discussions, I am pleased that together we have found a constructive and supportive way forward for my grandson and his family.

Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved members of my family.

I recognise the challenges they have experienced as a result of intense scrutiny over the last two years and support their wish for a more independent life.

I want to thank them for all their dedicated work across this country, the Commonwealth and beyond, and am particularly proud of how Meghan has so quickly become one of the family.

It is my whole family’s hope that today's agreement allows them to start building a happy and peaceful new life.

Statement from Buckingham Palace

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are grateful to Her Majesty and the Royal Family for their ongoing support as they embark on the next chapter of their lives.

As agreed in this new arrangement, they understand that they are required to step back from Royal duties, including official military appointments.

They will no longer receive public funds for Royal duties. With The Queen's blessing, the Sussexes will continue to maintain their private patronages and associations.

While they can no longer formally represent The Queen, the Sussexes have made clear that everything they do will continue to uphold the values of Her Majesty.

The Sussexes will not use their HRH titles as they are no longer working members of the Royal Family.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have shared their wish to repay Sovereign Grant expenditure for the refurbishment of Frogmore Cottage, which will remain their UK family home.

Buckingham Palace does not comment on the details of security arrangements.

There are well established independent processes to determine the need for publicly funded security.

This new model will take effect in the Spring of 2020.

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan's effective resignation from front-line duties is only the latest crisis to hit the royal family in the last century https://t.co/iC6b96CBMj

— AFP news agency (@AFP) January 19, 2020

Britain's Prince William: 'fine by me' if children gay

Yahoo – AFP, June 26, 2019

Prince William's comments came during a visit to a charity dedicated to helping
young people made homeless due to their sexual orientation (AFP Photo/Jonathan Brady)

London (AFP) - Britain's Prince William said Wednesday it would be "fine by me" if his children came out as homosexual, but worried about the pressures it could place on them.

William and his wife Kate have three children: five-year-old Prince George, Princess Charlotte, four, and Prince Louis, who turned one in April.

William, 37, is second in line to the throne after his father Prince Charles, with George third in line to become king.

His comments came during a visit to the Albert Kennedy Trust (AKT), a charity dedicated to helping young people made homeless due to their sexual orientation.

During a discussion with people being supported by the organisation, William was asked how he would react if one of his children came out.

The Duke of Cambridge replied: "You really don't start thinking about that until you are a parent, and I think -- obviously absolutely fine by me.

"The one thing I'd be worried about is how they, particularly the roles my children fill, is how that is going to be interpreted and seen."

Message for society

Due to the monarchy's hereditary nature, William's children, in time, will become key figures in the royal family -- above all George.

The sovereign is the supreme governor of the Church of England and separately head of state of 16 countries around the world.

"It is something I'm nervous about, not because I'm worried about them being gay or anything -- it's more about the fact that I'm worried about the pressures... that they're going to face and how much harder their life could be," William said.

"I wish we lived in a world that it was... really normal and cool, but particularly for my family, and the position that we are in, that's the bit I am nervous about.

"I fully support whatever decision they make, but it does worry me from a parent point of view, how many barriers, hateful words, persecution, all that, and discrimination that might come.

"That's the bit that really troubles me.

"But that's for all of us to try and help correct and make sure that we can put that to the past."

AKT chief executive Tim Sigsworth, who is gay, said the prince's words would make a "massive difference".

Spain insists on Gibraltar veto in Brexit deal

Yahoo – AFP, November 19, 2018

Spain has a long-standing claim on Gibraltar, which was ceded to the British
crown in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht (AFP Photo/JORGE GUERRERO)

Brussels (AFP) - Spain warned Monday it could yet derail the Brexit deal agreed between London and Brussels if it does not guarantee Madrid's veto over Gibraltar's future status.

Madrid has a long-standing claim on Gibraltar, which was ceded to the British crown in the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht.

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May is due to sign a treaty with European Union leaders to leave the bloc on Sunday, if Spain does not stand in the way.

But Spain's Foreign Minister Josep Borrell warned on Monday after a meeting of EU ministers that the draft deal does not spell out how Gibraltar should be handled.

He said the text does not make it clear that future negotiations on ties between Brussels and post-Brexit Britain are separate from the Gibraltar issue.

"Future negotiations on Gibraltar are separate negotiations. And that is what needs to be made clear," Borrell said.

"Until it is clear ... we will not be able to give our agreement", he warned.

According to Article 184 of the draft divorce deal, "the EU and the United Kingdom shall make every effort, in good faith and with full respect for their respective legal systems, to adopt the measures necessary to negotiate rapidly the agreements governing their future relationship."

These agreements will be negotiated between Brexit day on March 29 and December 2020 -- extendable once -- and will enter into force at the end of the period.

But Spain wants to retain what it sees as its right to negotiate the future on Gibraltar with Britain on a bilateral basis, giving it an effective veto.

Although the legal service of the EU Council has tried to reassure Spain that the text does not preclude this, Madrid is seeking further clarification.

"Until we have the future declaration and we know what it says, whether we agree or not, we are not going to approve the withdrawal agreement either," Borrell said.

In London, May's spokesman said: "The draft withdrawal agreement agreed last week covers Gibraltar.

"The PM has been clear that we will not exclude Gibraltar, and the other overseas territories and the crown dependences from our negotiations on the future relationship. We will get a deal that works for the whole UK family."

Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo said the position adopted by Madrid "does little to build mutual confidence and trust going forward."

Over the weekend, European diplomats said they did not expect Spain's concerns to derail the agreement.

#UPDATE "I have just announced to the King of Spain that we have an agreement on Gibraltar," Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez says in a televised address. "Spain... will vote in favour of Brexit." pic.twitter.com/hJ64BhsdiZ

— AFP news agency (@AFP) November 24, 2018

EU green-lights talks on Australia, NZ trade deals

Yahoo – AFP, May 22, 2018

EU Commissioner of Trade Cecilia Malmstrom welcomed the mandates adding that
the deals with Australia and New Zealand would be "win-win" for both sides (AFP
Photo/John THYS)

The EU officially launched free trade talks with Australia and New Zealand on Tuesday, part of Europe's desire to promote free trade deals against the increasingly protectionist stance of the United States.

The pursuit of the deals also sends a challenge to Britain, which has made deepened links with its Commonwealth partners a priority for its post-Brexit future.

"Today's decision to open trade talks with Australia and New Zealand is... a reminder to the world of the EU's commitment to openness, free trade and global cooperation," said Emil Karanikolov, minister of economy of Bulgaria, which holds the EU's rotating presidency.

The EU underlined that the trade deals would put the emphasis on industrial and manufacturing sectors, and not agriculture, with fears high in Europe that meat and dairy products could pour in from the southern hemisphere.

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern (L) and French President Emmanuel 

Macron arrive for a joint news conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris on 

April 16, 2018 (AFP Photo/CHARLES PLATIAU)

"The mandates do not envisage full liberalisation of trade in agricultural products, which are foreseen as benefiting from specific treatment," an EU statement said.

The EU's top trade official Cecilia Malmstrom welcomed the mandates adding that the deals would be "win-win" for both sides.

"Starting these talks between likeminded partners sends a strong signal at a time where many are taking the easy road of protectionism," she added.

The decision to launch the talks was taken at a meeting where EU trade ministers were also set to discuss the ongoing trade row over with the US administration.

Harry and Meghan shake up royal tradition in star-studded wedding

Yahoo – AFP, James PHEBY with Robin MILLARD in London, May 19, 2018

The royal newlyweds kissed in front of the Windsor crowds (AFP Photo/Danny Lawson)

Windsor (United Kingdom) (AFP) - Prince Harry and Meghan Markle tied the knot at Windsor Castle on Saturday in a royal wedding like no other, mixing British pomp and African-American culture in front of a celebrity congregation and cheering crowds.

The new Duke and Duchess of Sussex exchanged vows in St. George's Chapel in a historic ceremony, sealed with a kiss, which brought the biracial US TV star into the heart of the British monarchy.

As more than 100,000 people packed the sun-baked Windsor streets and millions watched worldwide, Queen Elizabeth II and the royal family were joined inside by stars including Oprah Winfrey, Serena Williams, Elton John, George Clooney and David Beckham.

The couple held hands throughout and exchanged vows in a Church of England service modified to reflect the bride's heritage and strong sense of independence.

Firebrand US pastor Michael Curry delivered a full-throttle address invoking slaves and the power of love, and a gospel choir sang classics "Stand By Me" and "This Little Light of Mine".

Markle walked down the aisle in St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle, on her own

before being accompanied to the altar by Prince Charles (AFP Photo/Danny Lawson)

Markle began her walk down the aisle alone with her 10 bridesmaids and page boys walking behind her flowing white silk dress, designed by Clare Waight Keller at the French fashion house Givenchy.

Her father had been due to meet her half-way but after he pulled out due to heart surgery, Harry's father Prince Charles stepped in to escort her to the altar.

Markle's mother, Doria Ragland, looked visibly moved during the wedding.

With the words "I will", 33-year-old Harry, and US former actress Meghan, 36, declared they would love, comfort, honour and protect each other.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby declared them husband and wife -- sparking huge cheers from crowds outside the church, watching on big screens.

The bride's father Thomas Markle also followed the wedding on television and voiced regret he was unable to attend, TMZ reported.

"My baby looks beautiful and she looks very happy. I wish I were there," he told the US celebrity news website.

The royal couple rode in a horse-drawn carriage through Windsor after the 

wedding (AFP Photo/Jeff J Mitchell)

Smiles at the altar

Harry hand-picked flowers for Markle's bouquet from their home at Kensington Palace.

Her five-metre veil also contained floral designs from her native California and all 53 Commonwealth countries.

The groom and his brother Prince William -- his best man -- wore the blue doeskin frockcoat uniform of a major in the Blues and Royals, the regiment Harry served with in Afghanistan during his 10 years in the British army.

"You look amazing," Harry told his bride as she arrived.

The couple grinned during Curry's dramatic address about the power of love, in which he quoted civil rights icon Martin Luther King.

"I'm talking about some power. Real power. Power to change the world," the African-American preacher intoned.

The bride and groom held hands and giggled at the altar (AFP Photo/

Owen Humphreys)

There were no political leaders among the 600 guests but many celebrities, including Idris Elba, James Blunt, Tom Hardy and James Corden.

Some of Markle's former co-stars in US hit television series "Suits" attended, as did Harry's ex-girlfriends Chelsy Davy and Cressida Bonas.

The newlyweds kissed on the chapel's West Steps after the wedding, before going on a carriage procession ride through Windsor where flag-waving well-wishers cheered them on in a carnival atmosphere.

"It's been a historic, epic day," said Leslie Owusu, from nearby High Wycombe.

"It's a union of different cultures, you've got America and England and a fusion of two people that love people and life."

Kiss and carriage ride

Hundreds of street parties and public screenings were held around Britain where the wedding is a welcome respite for a country still burdened by austerity and divided over Brexit.

Well-wishers cheered as they watched the wedding on a giant screen (AFP 

Photo/Tolga AKMEN)

Revellers also packed into bars to watch as far afield as Sydney, Hong Kong and Markle's native Los Angeles, for what is likely to be the last big British royal wedding for a generation.

In Windsor, thousands of fans bagged their spots by dawn, bearing rugs and picnics, Union Jack flags and patriotic paraphernalia, and the bubbly was flowing freely.

"It made me really emotional when I saw them coming past," said Helen Oliver, 50.

Canapes and Meghan's speech

The queen hosted a lunchtime reception at the castle, where Elton John performed to guests eating canapes including Scottish langoustines, English asparagus and Windsor lamb.

The royal couple cut the lemon and elderflower cake, while Charles and Harry made speeches introduced by William.

Profiles of Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, with photos and 

details of wedding (AFP Photo/Cecilia SANCHEZ)

Harry later drive his bride to the evening reception for 200 friends and family in an open-top E-Type Jaguar with the number plate E190518 -- the wedding date.

In another break with convention, Meghan was due to speak at the Frogmore House bash.

"She's got her own voice, a personality, and I think all that made a huge impression on everybody," said Shrabani Basu, a Commonwealth historian.

The couple met on a blind date in July 2016 and had a whirlwind romance, criss-crossing the Atlantic as she continued filming "Suits" in Toronto.

Harry was scarred by his mother Diana's death in a Paris car crash in 1997 when he was just 12, and he had to mourn in the full glare of the world's media.

His wedding featured a hymn used at Diana's funeral, at which he and William had walked behind her casket.

Sixth in line to the throne, Harry is one of the most popular royals, while Markle, a divorcee, is seen as a breath of fresh air for the monarchy.

Bishop Michael Bruce Curry gave an impassioned address during the

wedding ceremony (AFP Photo/Owen Humphreys)

Related Articles:

Pastor Curry spices up royal wedding with power of love

#RoyalWedding Time to party and Harry's driving.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex leave Windsor Castle for an evening reception at Frogmore House pic.twitter.com/q2MeMD1Y7C

— AFP news agency (@AFP) May 19, 2018

'Illegal to be who I am' - Daley urges change in same-sex laws

Yahoo – AFP, Robert SMITH, April 13, 2018

Britain's Tom Daley has voiced his concerns about the treatment of homosexuals
 in large parts of the Commonwealth, whose athletes are gathered on Australia's
Gold Coast for the ongoing Games (AFP Photo/Anthony WALLACE)

Gold Coast (Australia) (AFP) - English world champion diver Tom Daley on Friday urged Commonwealth nations who outlaw homosexuality to relax their anti-gay stance.

Openly gay Daley, who is expecting a child with his partner through a surrogate, grasped the opportunity of his gold medal triumph in the 10m synchro event to push for change.

Daley, who won gold with team-mate Daniel Goodfellow, said sexual acts between consenting adults of the same sex are criminalised in 37 Commonwealth countries.

Daley voiced his concerns about the treatment of homosexuals in large parts of the Commonwealth, whose athletes are gathered on Australia's Gold Coast for the ongoing Games.

"Hopefully, I know this might sound a bit political, but by the next Commonwealth Games (in Birmingham 2022), there are 37 countries in the Commonwealth where it's currently illegal to be who I am, so hopefully we can reduce that number between now and then," Daley told reporters.

"Coming to the Gold Coast and being able to live as an openly gay man is really important and to be able to feel comfortable in who you are when you are standing on that diving board.

"For 37 countries that are here participating that's very much not the case."

Daley said it was time for those Commonwealth countries to change their anti-gay laws.

"You just have to face those things and try and make change," he said.

"There are lots of things that are going to take a long time to change, but I feel with the Commonwealth I think we can really help push some of the other nations to relax their laws on anti-gay sex."

Commonwealth Games Federation CEO David Grevemberg said his organisation was proud of its record on inclusivity.

"At the time of Glasgow 2014, 43 Commonwealth countries criminalised same sex activity, but today, that number has been reduced to 37," Grevemberg said Friday.

"We hope that the Commonwealth sports movement is playing a meaningful role in the wider global conversation around tolerance, empowerment and legal recognition for all."

Daley's comments were backed by New Zealand boxer Alexis Pritchard, who wore rainbow socks in support of gay rights in her 57kg semi-final on Friday.

"I think it's particularly sad that people cannot love who they want to love," she told AFP.

"It's important that each and every individual has rights to receive love and give love to the people that they choose.

"I find it absolutely sad that we are not open to that in so many nations."

The penalties for private, consensual sexual conduct between same-sex adults remain harsh in a number of Commonwealth countries, including imprisonment, hard labour and in some cases flogging.

The Commonwealth countries that outlaw homosexuality include Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and Tonga.

Another town scraps Australia Day, drawing government ire

Yahoo – AFP, 14 Sep 2017

Another town scraps Australia Day, drawing government ire

   

Sydney (AFP) - Marking Australia Day is like celebrating the Holocaust, a Melbourne politician said as her council scrapped a holiday it deemed offensive to Aboriginal people, in a move the government on Thursday labelled "extreme and divisive".

The council in the Melbourne suburb of Moreland became the third in Victoria state to decide not to recognise Australia Day.

The annual holiday, on January 26, commemorates the arrival of the country's first British settlers in 1788 and is a time when citizenship ceremonies are held.

But it is termed "Invasion Day" by many indigenous Australians who say it marks the beginning of the decline of Aboriginal culture.

In debating the issue Wednesday, Moreland Socialist Alliance councillor Sue Bolton said commemorating Australia Day "would be like celebrating the Nazi Holocaust", state broadcaster ABC reported.

Assistant Minister for Immigration Alex Hawke said in a statement the government rejected "the extreme and divisive nature of the discussion Greens and Socialist councillors are promoting".

He said the government of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull "strongly condemns comparisons of Australia Day with the Nazi Holocaust as deeply offensive to all Australians".

"Australia Day is a recognition of our shared history and the Turnbull government, along with the vast majority of Australians, indigenous and non-indigenous, fully support Australia Day remaining on January 26."

Australia's colonial history credits Captain James Cook with discovering the country, but Aboriginal people inhabited the land for more than 60,000 years before the first European explorers arrived.

Last month a war of words erupted over colonial-era statues in Australia, with several in Sydney defaced, including one of Cook with the words "change the date" in reference to Australia Day.

The vandalism sparked a furious response from Turnbull, who brushed off calls for the statues to be torn down, adding that the defacement was "what Stalin did" in denying history.

Aborigines remain the most disadvantaged Australians. They were believed to have numbered around one million at the time of British settlement, but now make up only about three percent of the total population of 24 million.

Town scraps Australia Day, calling it offensive to Aboriginal people. Government says move is "extreme and divisive" https://t.co/GicfnvGVrU pic.twitter.com/xrT7JsgrtR

— AFP news agency (@AFP) September 14, 2017

Related Articles:

Aborigines in Australia longer than previously thought: study

UN blasts 'disturbing' racism against Aborigines in Australia

The Creation Choir - Mar 21, 2015 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll)

Gaia Global Consciousness Retreat (8) - Mar 24-25, 2015 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll)

Slavery claims as UK child sex abuse inquiry opens

Yahoo – AFP, Robin MILLARD, February 27, 2017

Between 1945 and 1970, youngsters were sent from Britain to Australia mainly,
but also Canada, New Zealand and what is now Zimbabwe -- often without the
consent of their families (AFP Photo/WILLIAM WEST)

London (AFP) - England's mammoth inquiry into historical child sex abuse was told of the "torture, rape and slavery" suffered by child migrants shipped to Australia, at its first public hearings on Monday.

The wide-ranging Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse opened by looking at the schemes that sent thousands of vulnerable children to far-flung parts of the Commonwealth in the decades after World War II.

David Hill broke down as he told the inquiry of the "endemic" sexual abuse at the school he was sent to in Australia.

"I hope this inquiry can promote an understanding of the long-term consequences and suffering of those who were sexually abused," he said.

"Many never recover and are permanently afflicted with guilt, shame, diminished self-confidence, low self-esteem, fear and trauma."

British Prime Minister Theresa May set up the inquiry in 2014 when she was interior minister.

The British Empire sent some 150,000 children abroad over 350 years, according to a 1998 parliamentary study, although the probe started Monday by looking at use of the practice after World War II.

British Prime Minister Theresa May set up a mammoth inquiry into historical 

child sex abuse in July 2014 when she was the interior minister (AFP Photo/

Daniel LEAL-OLIVAS)

It was justified as a means of slashing the costs of caring for lone children and providing disadvantaged young people with a fresh start, while meeting labour shortages in the Commonwealth and populating colonial-era lands with white British settlers.

Between 1945 and 1970, youngsters were sent mainly to Australia, but also Canada, New Zealand and what is now Zimbabwe -- often without the consent of their families.

But the promise of a good upbringing and an exciting new life in the sun was often, in reality, a world of forced labour, brutal treatment and sexual assault in remote institutions run by churches and charities.

"They sent us to a place that was a living hell," victim Clifford Walsh told the BBC.

Oliver Cosgrove was sent to Australia in 1941, one of an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 children shipped there from 1922 to 1967.

"Those who were abused tried in vain to tell others, who they hoped and believed might assist them. But they didn't," his representative told the inquiry.

"This was a systematic and institutional problem."

'Unacceptable depravity'

Aswini Weereratne, of the Child Migrants Trust which supports victims, said there was good evidence that Britain knew of the poor standards of care in Australian institutions but failed to respond.

"Some of what was done there was of quite unacceptable depravity. Terms like sexual abuse are too weak to convey it," she said.

"This was not about truly voluntary migration, but forced or coerced deportation."

Some children were said to have suffered "torture, rape and slavery," she added.

Professor Stephen Constantine told the hearings that royal visits to such institutions legitimised them for people who saw the photographs, believing if it was good enough for the royal family, "it is good enough for us".

The hearings are being held at the International Dispute Resolution Centre in London. The opening phase dealing with Australia is expected to last 10 days.

The inquiry was established following the death of TV star Jimmy Savile in 2011, when it emerged he had been one of Britain's worst serial paedophiles, carrying out abuse unchecked in a range of public institutions.

The inquiry will look at historic abuse in England and Wales, including in schools, hospitals, children's homes, local authorities, religious organisations, the BBC, the armed forces and charities.

It will also examine allegations involving famous people in politics and the media.

The inquiry got off to a rocky start, with the first three chairs stepping down.