Former Africa president and Umkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party leader Jacob Zuma has defended his decision to display the South African flag during a recent visit to Morocco, saying the national symbol belongs to all citizens, not just the government.
Speaking at a Friday press briefing in Sandton alongside senior party officials, Zuma dismissed questions about the flag’s use as misplaced.
“The South African flag doesn’t belong to the government,” Zuma said, laughing. “Every citizen owns the flag. It’s not a government flag.”
His remarks came after Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Ronald Lamola protested the display of South African national symbols during Zuma’s July 15 meeting in Rabat with Moroccan Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita. P
Photos from the meeting showed both Moroccan and South African flags, as Morocco had previously set up with numerous diplomatic figures prior to Zuma’s visit.
However, in an attempt to leverage Zuma’s visit to further domestic partisan rivalries, Lamola said the use of the national flag in this context breached diplomatic norms.
Zuma’s trip, in which he was accompanied by MK Party’s Head of Presidency Magasela Mzobe, has stirred criticism from political rivals. ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula labelled him a “sellout” for engaging with Morocco, and endorsing the Kingdom’s autonomy plan for the Sahara.
The visit has highlighted deep political and diplomatic rifts in South Africa, with Zuma maintaining his stance that the flag belongs to all South Africans, as the government alleges that its use in unofficial settings undermines foreign policy.
In Morocco, officials dismissed the controversy over flag protocol as a diversion from the core political issue. The use of the South African flag during Zuma’s visit, they said, was a gesture of respect rather than a claim of presidential authority.
They also pointed to precedent, instances where South Africa’s national symbols were used by non-state actors in pro-Polisario events without triggering any governmental backlash.
Moroccan analysts see the episode as part of a broader effort by Pretoria to avoid engaging directly with the substance of the Moroccan Sahara debate, a stance they say is increasingly out of step with emerging voices in South African civil and political society.
add your comment
Terms of publication : Not to offend the writer, people, sacred things, or attack religions or the divine self, and refrain from racist incitement and insults.