Natal deal opens way for other 'kings'

AS THE celebration and relief at the last-minute deal between Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi, Nelson Mandela and President F W de Klerk subsided yesterday, it began to dawn on South Africa that by enshrining the position of the Zulu king in the constitution, the political leaders have opened the way for scores of other kings and chiefs to claim they, too, should have their status officially recognised.

Nelson Mandela is believed to have had reservations about recognising the Zulu king in the national constitution precisely because of this problem. And, for once, he was at one with Chief Buthelezi who angrily rejected the idea that any other kingdom in South Africa could be compared to the Zulus.

'Mandela is right,' said Peter Delius, Professor of History at the University of the Witwatersrand. 'Depending on how (the status of kingship) is phrased in the constitution, it opens up a whole new can of worms,' he said.

Professor Delius would not put a figure on the number of potential kingship candidates but he said that the Pedi and Suthu kingdoms of the 19th century qualify as much, if not more, than the Zulus as sophisticated political systems with centralised institutions that qualified as kingdoms. The Xhosa had a house of senior chiefs and could, in many respects, be called a kingdom.

Samson Ndou, Director of the Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa (Contralesa), said there are 11 tribes in South Africa and therefore there should be 11 kings. Contralesa, despite being orientated towards the African National Congress, campaigns for the representation of traditional leaders in the new constitution. It claims to represent more than 4,000 chiefs. Yesterday it issued a statement condemning the deal for the Zulu king because of its 'failure to take into account the existence of other deserving kingdoms and monarchies throughout South Africa.'

The ANC has resisted recognising unelected leaders but Cyril Ramaphosa, ANC Secretary General, was forced to concede yesterday: 'It is clear to us that throughout the country there is a close allegiance to traditional rulers. It is a matter we cannot just dismiss.'

It is not simply a question of tradition versus democracy. Many chiefs do not have the support of their people and the institution is badly tainted. Colonialism and the apartheid system froze, exaggerated, perhaps sometimes even created a tribal system in South Africa as a way of keeping black Africans divided.

They also manipulated the rulers with money, and replaced defiant chiefs with pliant ones. As a result, hundreds of ruling chiefs will be challenged by deposed chiefs or their children or grandchildren. Professor Delius warns of the possibility of many local succession wars and feuds.