Durban - The Special Official Funeral Category 1 funeral of the late King Goodwill Zwelithini KaBhekuzulu, who passed away on Friday, will be accorded military honours the government said on Tuesday morning.
Following a reign of almost half a century, following his coronation as Zulu King in 1971, King Zwelithini succumbed to diabetes-related complications at the Chief Albert Luthuli Hospital in the early hours of Friday morning.
“The Special Official Funeral Category 1 is accorded with military honours. The burial will be a private Royal Family service. The official memorial service will take place at the Khethomthandayo Royal Palace in Nongoma on Thursday, 18 March 2021, starting at 10.00am,” said Government Communications Director-General Phumla Williams.
On Sunday, Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi announced that the king’s wish was to be buried at night and only by men in a private ceremony and that the royal family would do as per the wish of His Majesty.
Providing an update on the king’s funeral, Williams said that those who would like to send a message of condolence to the Royal Family, to the Zulu nation and to the people of KwaZulu-Natal and beyond to utilise the e-condolence book available on: [email protected] (link sends e-mail).
The memorial service will be broadcast live on the SABC and other major broadcast channels while additional arrangements have been made for the service to be streamed live on various government online platforms.
“These measures are also to assist those who may not be able to physically attend the funeral due to the current Covid-19 lockdown level 1 regulations which stipulate that gatherings for funerals may not exceed 100 people.
“Arrangements and guidelines for media to cover the memorial service will be outlined at a technical briefing that will take place in due course, media will be advised of the details,” Williams said.
Below are the links to the government’s online streaming platforms for the funeral:
Twitter: @GovernmentSA
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/GovernmentZA