Introduction Of The King
By
Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi MP
Traditional Prime Minister To The Zulu Monarch And Nation
Inkosi Of The Buthelezi Clan
And President Of The Inkatha Freedom Party
Glebelands Hostel: 17 October 2015
His Majesty the King of the Zulu Nation; Members of the Royal Family and membersof the King’s Council; Officials of Government; Members of the SAPS and the SANDF; residents of Umlazi and all those who live in fear, apprehension and grief.
Many among us carry the scars of violence that marked the war for freedom in South Africa. We recall the wounds inflicted at the hands of our fellow freedom fighters, as we butted heads over the right strategy to destroy apartheid. We remember how every weekend was dedicated to four or five funerals of people we knew. We remember blood in the streets.
His Majesty our King lived through that time, and carried the onerous burden of leading his people in that darkest of hours. He too remembers the bloodshed, the loss of life, and families destroyed. But the pain we experienced is doubled in our King, for we looked to him for the succour that even a king could not provide.
The people’s war that raged in this province could not be stopped by one leader. I know; for I spent my last ounce of strength trying. But as much as we called for peace and an end to violence, the bloodshed would not stop until both sides abandoned the passion for revenge and saw the need for reconciliation.
His Majesty our King has come to Glebelands Hostel today driven by that same desire to create peace and end the bloodshed. Glebelands is locked in a crisis of violence. We have all seen enough, and we weep to know that it has happened under democracy, in a free South Africa. It should never have happened that a mother would need to come and clean the blood of her son from the floor of this hostel. A sister should never have had to wipe up the blood of her brother.The murders that have taken place here have robbed families of their breadwinners, leaving them grief-stricken and destitute. Whether it is driven by politics or crime, the violence in this place must be stopped. We therefore thank His Majesty our King for intervening.
We also thank the South Africa Police Service and the Defence Force for working to maintain order in Umlazi. We thank the community workers who stand side by side with our people, trying to restore peace. And we thank every member of this community who refuses to engage the violence in a brutal cycle of revenge, who refuses to bow under the weight of fear, and refuses to give up hope of peace in Umlazi.
As he seeks to unite all these people of goodwill, it is my privilege to introduce His Majesty the King of the Zulu Nation.