Inkatha Freedom Party leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi has openly admitted that his son died as a result of HIV and Aids.
Buthelezi, who was axed from the national cabinet this week amid controversy, made the admission at the funeral of his son, Prince Nelisuzulu Benedict Buthelezi, who died this week at the age of 53.
At the end of a moving tribute to his "son of Africa", Buthelezi added to his prepared speech: "I reach out to all the other people who have died of HIV/Aids. My son did."
Buthelezi was addressing thousands of mourners at the funeral in Mahlabathini in northern KwaZulu-Natal on Friday.
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His statement has broken the wall of silence His statement has broken the wall of silence that continues to surround the deaths of well-known people in an HIV and Aids ravaged country and challenged the stigma that still clings to the disease.
The former home affairs minister has during his terms in cabinet attacked the ANC's slow response to the Aids crisis, with almost weekly pleas for more urgent intervention.
A first sign of Buthelezi's courage to take the government head-on came in the debate on President Thabo Mbeki's state-of-the-nation address in 2002, when he launched a fierce attack on the ANC's Aids policy.
But a close aide remarked on Saturday that something that may have contributed to Buthelezi's brave admission this week was the fact that he was "free for the first time in his life".
"This is the first time that he can really push the envelope because he was always beholden to the ANC presidency and before that to the homeland system of apartheidâ" the aide said.
'We are a nation which ought to be in mourning' Others remarked that it was nothing new for him to speak freely about Aids and sexual practices in front of traditional audiences. They say he has been criss-crossing the province for three years raising awareness about the pandemic and advocating safe sex.
Even though his admission was not included in the prepared text, Buthelezi was clearly referring to HIV and Aids elsewhere during the tribute, as he said: "I am crying for the death of my son. I come here moved by the pain of a father who has lost his beloved son. I feel the pain of any father and mother across our land at this tragic hour of history. I feel the pain for the many children of Africa who are now dying an untimely and terrible death. I am in mourning.
"We are a nation which ought to be in mourning. We are a country in mourning. So many people have died or will need to follow them. As I feel the pain of the death of my own son, I hear the cries and laments of South Africa."
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This article was originally published on page 1 of Sunday Argus on May 02, 2004
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