S. Africa's Zulu King denies praising apartheid era

South Africa's Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini on Monday denied reports that he praised the apartheid era during which things were better than they are now.

The Zulu king allegedly made the remarks when delivering a speech in Nongoma in northern KwaZulu-Natal Province on Saturday night during a celebration of his 44 years in power.

The Cape Times newspaper on Sunday quoted the king as saying that the National Party, dominated by whites, had built a powerful government with the strongest economy and army on the continent, but then came "this so-called democracy" in which black people started destroying the gains of the past.

The king said history would judge black people harshly as they had failed to build on the successes of the apartheid regime, the report said.

He also reportedly said black people "loved to use matches" to burn down infrastructure built during apartheid.

In a response, royal household spokesperson Prince Thulani Zulu that the king's speech was misrepresented.

"The King was very appreciative of the fact that he has reigned during the time of the apartheid government and he's still living today during the time of democracy, and he is able to find out what was good in apartheid and what was bad," the spokesperson said.

"As much as he can even find out today what is good and what is bad about democracy. So he wasn't actually saying the times of apartheid were better ... there is nowhere the King talked about that," the spokesperson added.

Zwelithini is the reigning King of the Zulu kingdom under the Traditional Leadership clause of South Africa's republican constitution.

The Zulu is the largest ethnic group in South Africa, with an estimated 10-11 million people living mainly in KwaZulu-Natal Province. Enditem