'It doesn't feel great to suffer in silence': Meghan on why she's 'proud' Lilibet has 'found her voice'
The Duchess of Sussex says her three-year-old daughter Princess Lilibet has "found her voice".
Video has emerged of Meghan making the comments during a women's panel on the final day of her and Prince Harry's tour of Colombia.
The duchess, 43, said a big part of her role as a mother was encouraging her daughter.
Watch the video above.
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Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and Francia Marquez, Colombia's Vice President on Sunday. Getty
Speaking at the Afro Women and Power event Meghan said:
"It doesn't feel great to suffer in silence or even just sit in silence if in those moments you want to be heard or if you have something to say.
"So I think part of the role-modelling that I certainly try to do as a mother is to encourage our daughter, who at three, she has found her voice.
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"We're so proud of that, because that is how we, as I was saying, create the conditions in which there's a ripple effect of young girls and young women knowing that if someone else is encouraging them to use their voice and be heard that is what they are doing and they're going to create such a different environment than any of us grew up in when our voices were meant to be smaller."
Meghan praised her husband Prince Harry for "empowering women".
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex spent four days touring Colombia following an invitation from its vice president. Getty
The duchess said that her role as a mother and parent was to ensure young girls feel their voices are being heard and "also that young boys are being raised to listen".
"The same goes for adult women and men – this isn't something that can be solely responsible and in the hands of just women," Meghan said.
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"Yes, we work incredibly well together as a team, but as my husband is great testament to, the role of men in this, of empowering women, of allowing them to know that their voices are heard, starting at a young age all the way through adulthood, is key."
Meghan began her talk on the panel by speaking Spanish, telling the audience she could "feel the embrace from Colombia".
Prince Harry and Meghan have finished their second major tour of the year, following a visit to Nigeria in May. Archewell Foundation via Getty I
"Sorry if my Spanish is not perfect because I learnt 20 years ago in Argentina, but I'm trying because here I can feel this community and this feeling which is the best in the world," she said.
Prince Harry was also in the crowd.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have now wrapped up their four-day visit to the South American country, which offered many colourful photo opportunities but also raised questions about why the tour happened in the first place.
One area of focus for the couple in Colombia was to promote their newly-launched online safety campaign, The Parents' Network, following a pilot program through their Archewell Foundation in 2023.
Their visit comes just months before a Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children in Colombia in November.
However, Prince Harry and Meghan did not reveal why Colombia was chosen for their tour or who paid for their travel and security.
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