Durban - Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu’s daughter, the Rev Mpho Tutu, has married her long-term partner, Professor Marceline van Furth.
Van Furth is a professor of paediatric infectious diseases at the Vrije University in Amsterdam and also holds the Desmond Tutu chair at the institution.
The professor announced on her LinkedIn profile on Friday that she had married Tutu in Oegstgeest in the Netherlands on December 30.
According to media reports, this is the second marriage for both women.
Clive Conway, chairman of the Tutu Foundation UK, posted on Facebook that the couple had married in a small civil ceremony and the wedding would be celebrated in Cape Town in May 2016.
“The couple are very grateful to their families and friends for their love and support.”
There was mixed reaction to news of the marriage on social media with many congratulating the couple and recalling the Anglican archbishop’s comments in 2013 against homophobia.
One user posted on Facebook: “I admire the marriage of Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu’s daughter the Rev Mpho Tutu. I hope this will allow the Anglican Church to further review its policies on the union of same sex couples.”
The Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation also tweeted its congratulations to the couple.
Others asked whether the Anglican Church was now condoning same-sex marriages, but Mpho Tutu is a priest of the Episcopalian Church of the US, which does allow same-sex marriages.
Daily News