CORRECTION AND APOLOGIES TO KING ZWELITHINI: The Zulu King, never called gay relationships “rotten” – Never said what the media said he said!

His Royal Majesty,  King Zwelithini

Zulu King is owed an apology
by Abdul Milazi

¨Gay rights and other rights activists have for the past weeks vilified King Zwelithini for having allegedly called gay relationships “rotten” – now it appears he never did.The media took a stance and condemned the King in centimetres and centimetres of editorial comments. To the media the King was guilty of whatever he was accused of. Interestingly, my colleague Sithembiso Msomi, who had listened to the recording of the speech, cautioned in his weekly column that this nationwide condemnation emanated from what he called “lost in translation”.Now isiZulu is my mother tongue and I was fortunate to listen to a discussion on Ukhozi FM (formerly Radio Zulu in my youth) and they played the parts of the King’s speech that was supposed to have called gay relationships rotten.

To my shock and horror, the King never said what the media said he said, even if translated literally.The King said when you are a man or woman abusing another man or woman, you are rotten. He was talking about abuse and not sexual abuse. He used the word “ukuhlukumeza” which means abuse in a general sense. If he had intended to abuse in a sexual context, he would have used the word “ukunukubeza” which is the IsiZulu word for sexual abuse.What he said was, any person abusing another, whether man versus man or woman versus woman, is rotten...¨ HERE

·  Thanks to Abdul Milazi
·  Thanks to Behind the Mask, sidebar
·  Thanks to Times Live,   HERE
·  Thanks to Ukhozi FM