Canaan Mdletshe

A chief at Melmoth in northern KwaZulu-Natal organised a peace meeting yesterday after a feud in his local authority that has left several people dead and scores injured.

Families have fled to the mountains after violence that erupted in February.

So far five people have died - the latest person was killed on Saturday. Ten people have been arrested in connection with the violence.

The residents of Ulumbi said they were still sleeping in the mountains at night because they fear that they might be attacked.

The fight broke out because the families of two men are competing to marry the same woman.

After the tensions in the area, Inkosi Biyela of the Obuka Tribal Authority, organised a peace meeting at Ulumbi yesterday.

The chief and the feuding families were locked in a meeting for the whole day, trying to achieve lasting peace.

At the time of going to press the meeting had not ended.

Inkosi Biyela was present with his indunas and members of the community also attended the peace meeting.

Since the violence erupted in the area police visibility has increased in the village. Additional police deployments arrived last week.