KING SHaKA DAY

ADDRESS BY
PRINCE MANGOSUTHU BUTHELEZI, MP
CHAIRMAN OF THE HOUSE OF TRADITIONAL LEADERS (Kwa-zulu natal)
INKOSI OF THE BUTHELEZI CLAN
AND UNDUNANKULU KAZULU 

The Honourable Master of Ceremonies; members of the Royal House and amaKhosi present; Your Excellencies; members of the diplomatic corps and honourable members of the Consular corps; the Mayor of KwaDukuza; the Mayor of Ilembe; the Honourable Premier of KwaZulu-Natal, Mr S'bu Ndebele and Mrs Ndebele; Honourable Ministers from both the National Assembly and the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature; members of Parliament; members of provincial Parliaments; Chairpersons of Regional Councils; their Worships the Mayors; Councillors and Indunas; members of the various clans who comprise the Zulu nation; our distinguished guests.

I am delighted to introduce His Majesty King Zwelethini Goodwill KaBhekuzulu to his father's people. The presence of His Majesty at this sacred ceremony, at which we pay homage to the founder and unifier of our Nation, King Shaka, speaks of the durability and continuity of both our monarchy and Nation. The line of succession, the hereditary principle, is the essence of monarchy, and safeguards its preservation and perpetuity. In a very special and unique way, the King symbolises the indivisible unity of the Zulu Nation. A unity which has stood the test of time since King Shaka welded our Kingdom together.

The legendary life of King Shaka, like all great historical figures, is shrouded in myth and enigma. Yet his legacy is not in doubt. Tempered and tested by the most difficult of childhoods and circumstances, King Shaka found within himself the most extraordinary qualities of leadership. When his father, Senzangakona died, Shaka became the Zulu King. From the day forward the Zulus were destined for fame. We know that with unnerving discipline and military precision, King Shaka worked the Zulu warriors rigorously, treating them as clay for his moulding. He almost single-handily reshaped what had been the unknown Zulus. What a feat. What a Man.

Each year, as we commemorate the life and legacy of our Nation's founding father, we ask afresh, 'how are the lessons from King Shaka's life relevant to today's circumstances?' I, for one, believe that there are many lessons and historical parallels from King Shaka's time that are relevant to our lives and Nation today.

The most important lesson, without doubt, is the internal unity and harmony of our Nation. At a time when the cultural and institutional integrity of our Nation is being increasingly assailed, commemorative events, such as this one, remind us of the importance of the need for unity and cohesion in our Nation.   Today's event serves to promote a greater sense of social and cultural togetherness within the Zulu Nation. For if we are to succeed in rebuilding our divided and broken society, we need to do so from the roots upwards.   

We must never forget that the strife and divisions that the Zulu nation reaps were the harvest of colonialism and conquest. Our forefathers were not party to our Kingdom's destruction after the defeat of King Cetshwayo's Regiment in the Battle of Ulundi in 1879, which paved the way for the British colonisers to divide our Kingdom into thirteen kinglets. It is said that those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. I pray to God Almighty, as we witness the destruction of our capital, Ulundi, for a third time, that our Nation will not be doomed to repeat history. For we eagerly await the restoration of our traditional Kingdom within our South African home. The reconciliation of our peoples cannot be complete until our Kingdom is totally restored. On this note, I feel there is something that I must mention as we celebrate Heritage Day. It was during my tenure as Minister of Home Affairs that this day was chosen to be the time in which the whole of South Africa pauses to celebrate its rich heritage.

It was not my decision that this day should coincide with the same day that we remember the founder our nation. I had appointed a task-team which made this recommendation. During the cabinet discussion, I proposed that Shaka Day and Heritage Day should be different days. Even though these two celebrations fall on the same day, we must keep them distinct in our minds.  We would not wish to impose the unique heritage of the Zulu nation onto the other peoples of our province, who also have their own heritages.

I asked during the Cabinet discussion, that the Heritage Day celebrations be adjusted to the specific context and characteristics of each province to cherish each province's constituent traditions. We are mindful that in our gloriously diverse province, we are endowed with an extraordinary wealth of traditions, which in many ways is like South Africa in miniature. This includes a large Indian community and a community of white brothers and sisters. Each community in our society is changing at a bewildering pace, some of it for the good, some it for the bad. The relentless process of migration and modernity is bringing material progress to the lives of many. Yet many people, especially in the rural communities, are being left behind. Change is eroding ties of social solidarity and kinship. In common with global trends, individuals are becoming increasingly atomised, whilst family and community ties are diminishing.

Once again, we see that the unity of the Kingdom prevailed in King Shaka's time because it was built up from the roots. People were responsible for decisions within all tiers of society: family, neighbourhood, community, and nation. In simple terms, people looked out for one another.  We must promote change to uplift our communities from poverty, hunger and despair, whilst at the same time keeping alive the spirit of ubuntu and togetherness. In this way, we build a bridge between tradition and modernity. King Shaka's unity principle instructs us that it is by moving together as one-Nation, we can best serve the social-economic needs of our people.

Our Nation faces another threat, move grave than any we have ever faced. A threat so insidious and surreptitious, it contains the dreadful potential to destroy our Nation from within. The HIV/Aids epidemic is hollowing out our families and communities. It leaves a trail of destruction in its wake. Broken lives; orphaned children; livelihoods destroyed; distrust and division; prejudice and taboo.   

The kind of calibre of King Shaka's leadership is needed to defeat this enemy in our midst. King Shaka perfected the famous encircling tactic. This tactic, suggesting the horns of the bull, was used by the Zulu warriors with devastating skill and precision at the Battle of Isandlwana in 1879. Like on that fateful day, we are experiencing an eclipse of the sun. In this most urgent of times, our Nation must adopt the same tactic to win the war against HIV/Aids.  At the end of the recently released Zulu film, 'Yesterday', we see the heroine take a sledgehammer to the hut she and her daughter built far from her homestead, where her husband had to spend his remaining lonely days dying of Aids, in fear of physical danger from the community.  Just like King Shaka in battle, we must encircle this disease in unity to tear down the walls of silence and stigma. Otherwise silence and stigma will kill us. Many lives have been lost, but many more lives can and must be saved.

Despite this grave hour, I believe our Nation's best days are still to come. Our Nation is as much 'a very remarkable people' today, as when Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli made the remark after imperial Britain's worst defeat at the Battle of Isandlwana. The glory of a nation, like an individual, lies in how we rise each time, after whatever challenge and tribulation comes our way. There is no hardship we cannot bear or trial we cannot endure, if we remain united.

It is for this same reason, I am now privileged and honoured to introduce the heir and successor of King Shaka, our present King, to give us his message for today.

Long live the King!