Pretoria - Foreign heads of state and dignitaries will not be stopped from attending former president Nelson Mandela's funeral in Qunu, but are advised not to, Minister in the Presidency Collins Chabane said on Monday.
“Nobody will be prevented from attending..., however, given the size and the scale of the operation and the size of the delegation and the limited infrastructure in the area, we advise (against it),” he told reporters in Johannesburg.
The venue in Qunu, in the Eastern Cape, where Mandela will be buried on Sunday could take only 5000 people.
Chabane said that because the site was in the bush, the facilities in the area would not be able to accommodate the numbers.
He said foreign guests should “take that advice very seriously”.
More than 100 heads of state, government officials, and royals have confirmed they will be attending the memorial for Mandela at the FNB Stadium, in Soweto, on Tuesday.
Sapa