Diplomats are astonished, and some outraged, that the African National Congress is charging them R3 000 a seat to attend the party's 51st national conference in Stellenbosch, Western Cape, in December.
The unprecedented fee - coupled with a non-transferable ticket - has angered some foreign legations, but others are more sanguine, saying they are merely surprised by the requirement.
The ANC, however, says there is nothing sinister in the move, explaining that it is merely an attempt to cover costs. The party says delegates, like diplomats, who will not participate in closed sessions will benefit from a full programme of other events and excursions.
This doesn't wash with some foreign representatives.
One diplomat commented: "This is extraordinary. You would have thought the ruling party in South Africa would be a little more encouraging to those whose task is to keep open contact between this country and the power centres of the world. To complicate that process just doesn't make sense."
But not all diplomats felt quite as strongly. "We are not going to make a big fuss about this," said a representative of one of the world's more influential states.
Some said the most inconvenient feature of the ANC's unusual protocol was the non-transferability of paid-for tickets.
"That means the same person has to be available for the entire duration of the conference. That's a luxury some embassies and high commissions can't afford," said a consular official.
None of the diplomats was prepared have their names published, preferring to be, well, diplomatic.
Even the official from the ANC's media desk at it's Johannesburg head office asked to be described merely as "an ANC spokesman".
The "spokesman" had this to say: "It's a normal trend for people invited to a conference to pay a fee. Even the ANC pays a fee when it is invited to conferences.
"In the case of the December conference, there is a whole programme planned for the guests - including excursions, such as a trip to Robben Island - and we believe it is only reasonable for us to try to cover the costs of this."
He added testily: "I'm not sure where you get your information from - this is a matter between us and those we have invited to the conference. And if they have a problem with it, instead of running to the media, they should liaise with the ANC's head of international relations, Mavivi Myakayaka-Manzini."