Zuma’s daughter to face charges related to 2021 riots

Former South African President Jacob Zuma’s daughter will face charges related to anti-government riots in the country four years ago in which 354 people died.

Duduzile Zuma — Sambudla, a lawmaker with the opposition uMkhonto weSizwe Party, or MKP, will appear in court in the eastern port city of Durban on Thursday, the party said in a statement posted on social media platform X. It appealed to its supporters to picket peacefully outside the court.

The state will charge Zuma-Sambudla with inciting terrorism, News 24 reported, citing a person it didn’t identify. MKP spokesman Nhlamulo Ndhlela initially confirmed that Zuma-Sambudla’s lawyers had been served with the charges, but later said she was unaware of them, the Cape Town-based website said.

Jacob Zuma founded the MKP in late 2023 and it went on to win almost 15% of the vote in elections held the following year, depriving the African National Congress of the parliamentary majority it had held for three decades. The ANC then formed a 10-party coalition government and the MKP became the main opposition, challenging the new administration at every turn.

MKP communications manager Sipho Tyira didn’t answer his phone when Bloomberg called seeking comment. Ndhlela’s phone has been “compromised” and he is temporarily unavailable, the party said in a separate statement on X.

Riots erupted in South Africa in July 2021 after Jacob Zuma was imprisoned over his refusal to testify before a judicial inquiry into state graft during his nine-year tenure as president. Much of the violence, which caused billions of rands worth of damage to infrastructure, property and businesses, took place in Zuma’s home province of KwaZulu-Natal.

© 2025 Bloomberg

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