Kate Middleton, Princes William and Harry Face Backlash After Visiting Hotels Owned by Sultan of Brunei
Duchess Kate Middleton, along with her husband Prince William and brother-in-law Prince Harry are reportedly in hot water with the public after attending events at hotels owned by the Sultan of Brunei, who recently enacted Sharia law in his country. Members of Hollywood and other celebrities have announced a boycott of his hotels in solidarity with homosexuals under Sharia law, which could lead to them being stoned to death.
Middleton attended the wedding of her cousin, Adam, at the Dorchester Hotel on Friday. She used a special blacked-out car so as to conceal her arrival and departure. She and her parents, Carole and Michael, as well as brother James and sister Pippa, were all present for the civil ceremony.
"The wedding was a big boost for the hotel," an insider told the Daily Mail. "It shows that the royals will not let the Brunei business keep them away."
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The Sultan owns a line of hotels throughout the world, but once he implemented Sharia law in his country, making homosexuality and adultery punishable by death by stoning, several celebrities took action and announced they were boycotting. Ellen DeGeneres and Jay Leno, along with British billionaire Richard Branson, were among the first to publicly denounce the Sultan and his businesses. "Vogue" editor Anna Wintour and French business tycoon Francois-Henri Pinault have since joined in the boycott.
Meanwhile, Princes William and Harry took part in a day of polo at the Audi Polo Challenge, which was held at Coworth Park in Berkshire, another resort owned by the Sultan. Dame Helen Mirren was in attendance and was photographed with the young men at the match.
"People outside of Brunei should respect us in the same way that we respect them," the Sultan said in a statement.
While Wintour said that she could not "in good conscience" stay at Paris' Meurice Hotel, the director of the Dorchester Collection responded that the boycott only hurts the workers.
"We have 3,500 employees working in our hotels, including 1,000 in France," Francois Delahaye told the RFI. "This will only penalize those employees. Why? Because if the boycott really works well, we'll have fewer customers and if we have fewer customers we'll need fewer employees to serve them."
