KZN government requests state funeral for Queen Shiyiwe Mantfombi Dlamini Zulu

The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government wants the late queen regent of the Zulu nation to be granted a state funeral.

In a statement on Sunday, the office of premier Sihle Zikalala said he had written to President Cyril Ramaphosa to request this. Queen Shiyiwe Mantfombi Dlamini Zulu died on Thursday, April 29 after an illness. She was 65.

“The application of the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government is indeed being considered by the presidency, taking into account all matters tabled and submitted in the proposal. The KZN provincial government will await further communication and feedback from the presidency,” said provincial government spokesperson Lennox Mabaso.

She had become the regent in an “interregnum” (until an official successor is named) after the death of her husband, King Goodwill Zwelithini Zulu a month earlier.

The KwaZulu-Natal provincial government said the queen’s death had come as a shock and it was keeping the royal family in its prayers.

Dlamini Zulu's passing comes amid battles over the successor of King Goodwill Zwelithini, with reports surfacing this week that the king's will might have been forged.

The Sunday Times reported that the matter will play out in court as the king's first wife sought to interdict the coronation of a new ruler.