White and Indian undertakers have been warned to stay out of the townships - a move engineered by the National Funeral Parlour Association of South Africa (Nafupa).

Secretary-General Nkosentsha Shezi said that banning white and Indian owned funeral parlours from conducting funerals in townships was a step toward redressing apartheid. He said that townships were populated exclusively by black people and are beset by social ills like unemployment and a lack of economic activity.

“This decision was taken to redress the ills of apartheid. They [Indian and white undertakers] come and pick away economic opportunities that could be used to benefit the township businesses‚ from people who are already been deprived‚” he said.

“This is not racist‚ this is realistic. For too long we have been celebrated our rainbow nation which is built on the blood and sweat of an African child‚” Shezi added.

As such‚ he said‚ the association had called on their “white and Indian brothers” to stay out of the townships‚ thereby allowing local black owned community businesses to prosper.

Shezi added that a picket outside funeral parlours owned by whites and Indians had been planned for later in the week.