"Accepted Donation Despite Close Aides' Opposition"
Crown Prince's Side Explains "It Was a Board Decision"
Received 3 Million Euros from Qatari Politician Between 2011 and 2015
[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Se-eun] Charles, Prince of Wales (73), the first in line to the British throne, is reported to have received donations amounting to 1.6 billion KRW from the family of Osama bin Laden, who was identified as the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks.
On the 30th (local time), the UK’s Sunday Times reported that on October 30, 2013, Prince Charles met with Bakr bin Laden (76), Osama bin Laden’s half-brother, at his residence, Clarence House in London, and agreed to receive a donation of ?1 million (approximately 1.58 billion KRW).
The meeting took place two years after Osama bin Laden was killed by US special forces in Pakistan.
The Sunday Times pointed out that despite many of Prince Charles’s close aides opposing the agreement at the time, the amount received from Bakr bin Laden and Shafiq bin Laden, another half-brother, was donated to the Prince of Wales’s Charitable Fund (PWCF), a charity established by Prince Charles in 1979.
One aide reportedly warned Prince Charles that news of receiving donations from the bin Laden brothers would provoke national outrage.
Royal officials at the time also expressed concerns that if Prince Charles’s name appeared in the same sentence as bin Laden, who was responsible for the deaths of 67 British citizens and thousands of Americans during the 9/11 attacks, it could severely damage not only Prince Charles’s reputation but also that of the PWCF.
However, Prince Charles refused to return the money, and the concerns of his aides were disregarded.
On the same day, Clarence House issued a statement acknowledging that the bin Laden brothers had made donations to the royal charity fund but denied that Prince Charles personally brokered the donation or accepted the funds personally.
Clarence House emphasized, "The acceptance of the donation was entirely after review by the PWCF trustees," and stated, "To suggest otherwise is misleading."
Ian Cheshire, chairman of the PWCF board, also stated that the donation was agreed upon by all five trustees at the time.
Meanwhile, British media previously reported that between 2011 and 2015, Prince Charles received cash bags totaling around €3 million (approximately 4.09 billion KRW) from a prominent Qatari royal politician on three occasions.
The Times confirmed that this money was deposited into the prince’s asset fund and, although there was no illegality, the fact that the prince received suspicious cash bags from a foreign influential politician is expected to have a considerable impact on the reputation of the heir to the throne.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
