This week, the African National Congress (ANC) sent a formal apology to the late Fezekile "Khwezi" Kuzwayo's family, a woman who accused former president Jacob Zuma of rape in 2006.
The provincial chairperson of the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), Siboniso Duma visited the family's home in Mpushini and apologised on behalf of the party.
This follows the repatriation of the remains of Khwezi's father, Judson Kuzwayo, a former member of Mkhonto weSizwe (MK), the ANC’s disbanded armed wing.
Kuzwayo's remains were recently repatriated and landed in Durban earlier this week, along with those of other MK members.
He died in 1985 while in exile in Zimbabwe.
Duma admitted that the party failed to protect and support Khwezi through her hardships, even though it is in their constitution to ensure that women and children were protected at all times.
His remarks and the visit come after it was said that the family has not forgiven the ANC for the treatment.
"There is noise that the family of comrade Kuzwayo is not healed because of the tragedy. We dearly apologise for that.
"We should have stood up when Khwezi was abused, we had others who spoke about it but it was not enough," he said.
Although Zuma was charged with rape, the court decided that the woman had given her consent. Even though he was found not guilty, the case caused a lot of public outrage.
Zuma rejected Khwezi's accusations during the trial, calling them a plot to thwart his hopes of becoming president.
Because of his close relationship to Khwezi's late father, many questioned if Zuma's sexual contact with her was appropriate. Khwezi had seen Zuma as a father figure.
But Duma said this would be raised in the sitting of Parliament so that people, no matter their influence or power, be held accountable for the misconduct.
Khwezi died in 2016 of natural causes at the age of 41. Meanwhile, Zuma now leads uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party that he launched in December 2023.
The party will celebrate its first anniversary next weekend at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, KZN.
IOL Politics