Planned cow sacrifice ritual sparks row
A plan to bless South Africa’s World Cup stadiums by slaughtering a cow inside each one has been met with widespread criticism amongst animal rights activists.
The Makhonya Royal Trust, who put forward the idea, described the proposal as “the true way to bless the tournament”. However, animal rights groups have asked to be consulted over the plans leading to the NSPCA writing to FIFA over the issue.
It is believed that the NSPCA has no issue with the cultural ceremony but wish it to be performed in the most humane way as possible.
Zolani Mkiva, Makhonya Royal Trust chairman, said: “We must have a cultural ceremony of some sort, where we are going to slaughter a beast. We sacrifice the cow for this great achievement and we call on our ancestors to bless, to grace, to ensure that all goes well.”
Mr Shiceka, the co-operative governance and traditional affairs minister, was quoted in South African media as giving his support to the plan. He said: “The World Cup will be on the African continent and we will make sure that African values and cultures are felt by the visitors,” the Citizen newspaper quoted him as saying.”
