The Zulu royal household is furious with the Young Communist League, after the league claimed the popular Reed Dance Festival is outdated and sexist.
Speaking at a Heritage Day function, the league's Castro Ngobese said young girls were being unconsciously coerced to display their genitals under the pretext of promoting outdated cultural practices such as the reed dance.
The comments have angered members of the royal family, including King Goodwill Zwelithini who regards the festival as one of his most successful projects because it attracts more than 10 000 maidens annually.
The Inkatha Freedom Party Youth Brigade has also condemned the statement, saying that Ngobese's comments showed that he was still suffering from some form of mental oppression.
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"The apartheid regime taught black people to look down on their cultural practices," said IFP youth brigade president Pat Lebeyna-Ntanzi.
"To brand the rich cultural heritage of the Zulu people, as expressed through the annual Reed Dance Festival as outdated, backwards and sexist, is a clear demonstration of how out of touch the Communist League is with the real challenges facing our young people," said Lebeyna-Ntanzi
She said the Reed Dance, as a cultural practice, taught young women to have pride in their womanhood.
Prince Mbonisi Zulu, Zwelithini's brother, said Ngobese's comments showed that he is ill-informed about Zulu cultural practices. He said his comment was "utter nonsense" that had to be ignored
"His Majesty and all seniors in the royal family are shocked by the statement.
They call on Ngobese to apologise to the Zulu nation for his comments," said Zulu.
He said the Zulu nation would not stop the Reed Dance Festival because it played a crucial role in moral regeneration and in preventing the spread of HIV and Aids.
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