A 14-year-old Zulu maiden participating in the reed-dance ceremony at King Goodwill Zwelithini’s Nkoyeni palace over the weekend was dragged outside and gang-raped, the Mercury reported on Tuesday.
Captain Vusi Mbatha said the Durban girl strayed from the group she was with and was forced outside by a group of men who then raped her.
The incident has prompted the Nomkhubulwane Culture and Youth Development organisation to call for men to be restricted from attending the event in future to make it safer for maidens.
”There needs to be tighter measures to ensure that hooligans don’t come near our girls,” the organisation’s director, Nomagugu Ngobese, said.
The king’s sister, Thembi Ndlovu, said she was upset when she heard about the rape.
”It is very unfortunate that this had to happen … Even though police were to ensure that everything ran smoothly, unfortunately they could not see to everyone at the same time,” she said. — Sapa