Is it time to erect a statue of Zulu King Cetshwayo next to Queen Victoria?

10 May 2017 - 15:06 By Bongani Mthethwa
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Cetshwayo, King of the Zulus came to England in 1882 when this portrait was painted by Karl Rudolf Sohn.
Cetshwayo, King of the Zulus came to England in 1882 when this portrait was painted by Karl Rudolf Sohn.
Image: Wikipeadia

Erect a statue of Zulu King Cetshwayo next to Queen Victoria outside the KwaZulu-Natal legislature.

That's the suggestion from the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) to KwaZulu-Natal Speaker Lydia Johnson to “Africanise” the provincial legislature‚ but in a spirit of reconciliation.

IFP provincial legislature member Joshua Mazibuko has proposed that a statue of Cetshwayo stands parallel to that of Queen Victoria outside the legislature in Pietermaritzburg‚ just as a statue of King Dinizulu was erected in 2008 next to that of General Louis Botha in eThekwini.

“Indeed as you approach this institution‚ both its exterior and interior tell the story of the hunters. Yes‚ there are photos inside which tell the story of the hunted. But these are not pronounced as the story of the hunters‚” said Mazibuko in a statement on Wednesday.

He said embarking on a project to erect King Cetshwayo’s statue alongside Queen Victoria “will stand as proof that we are determined to make reconciliation tangible and to revisit our history so that it also reflects the story of the hunted”.

“Why King Cetshwayo in particular? Because it was the warriors of this warrior king who faced and utterly humiliated the armies of this queen at iSandlwana‚” said Mazibuko.

Johnson‚ during a debate in the legislature‚ indicated that she agreed with Mazibuko’s sentiments and the legislature would seriously look into the proposal.

“Unlike the #Rhodes Must Fall campaign as well as the position taken by the Economic Freedom Fighters and other organisations‚ who called for uprooting statues representing colonialism and apartheid‚ the IFP has called for King Cetshwayo’s statue to stand parallel to that of the British Monarch‚” said Mazibuko.

Cetshwayo was the king of the Zulus from 1872 to 1879 and its leader during the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879. He led the Zulu nation to victory against the British in the Battle of Isandlwana. While the Zulus won the Battle of iSandlwana‚ they lost the crucial battle of Ulundi to the British.

Although King Cetshwayo escaped from Ulundi‚ he was soon captured in the Ngome Forest. He was imprisoned and sent into exile in the Cape.

Later he was allowed to travel to London and met Queen Victoria‚ who permitted him to return to South Africa to rule a portion of the former Zulu kingdom in 1883.

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