Swazi maidens started arriving on Monday at the country’s spiritual capital, Ludzidzini, ahead of this week’s annual reed dance, where bare-breasted virgins dance before Africa’s last absolute monarch.
A royal announcement aired on state radio summoned all maidens to register on Tuesday and be dispatched by King Mswati III to cut the reeds on the banks of Mbuluzana River in the picturesque Bhamsakhe area on Wednesday.
Traditional overseer Ntfonjeni Dlamini said the arrival of the maidens marks the beginning of festivities in honour of Queen Mother Ntombi Thwala.
”Their arrival is in honour of the queen mother, whose administrative capital is Ludzidzini, and the reeds are used as wind breakers for the traditional huts and other traditional structures,” Dlamini said.
On Saturday and Sunday, the young women will parade before the queen mother and the king during a ceremony at which the monarch, who already has 13 wives, may pick a new bride. — Sapa-AFP