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DJ's fans at court over Zulu shield row

Supporters of Ukhozi FM DJ Ngizwenkosi Mchunu have vowed to help him fight his discrimination and defamation lawsuit

“Our fight will not end here. We will continue to the Constitutional Court if we don’t win,” Dumisani Goba, the founder of the South African Traditional Awards said outside the Equality Court in Durban on Wednesday.

Mchunu is suing Durban’s King Shaka International Airport, the customs division of SARS, and the department of agriculture, after airport security officers allegedly confiscated his traditional shield in April.

The hearing was postponed to October 17.

In court papers, Mchunu says he was dressed in full traditional Zulu attire when he boarded a plane to Dubai, and on his return, security staff at the King Shaka International wanted to spray his shield because it “carried foot-and-mouth disease”.

Lawyers representing the airport and SARS were expected to argue  that charges be dropped against their clients. If the court rules in their favour, the legal battle will be between Mchunu and the agriculture department only.

Mchunu and his supporters were clad in traditional regalia during the court proceedings on Wednesday.

Addressing Mchunu’s supporters outside the court, Goba said they  would continue mobilising support for Mchunu to attend court hearings.    

“We will mobilise people. We will close the streets around the court. We don’t want what they have done. We will fight because we believe that our culture should not be undermined,” he said.

A stage was set outside the court where Goba and Mchunu addressed the crowd.

Mchunu said he had received a blessing from the Zulu monarch, King Goodwill Zwelithini to fight the matter in court.

He said he believed that it was important for him to fight for his culture.

“When I gave [USA] President Barack Obama a shield, he did not say that I had brought him the foot-and-mouth disease.” Mchunu presented Obama with a Zulu shield during his inauguration in 2009.

The court also heard that the affected parties would on September 5 view the closed circuit footage captured when Mchunu’s shield was allegedly taken.

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