MK Party takes no responsibility for South Africans lured to Russia-Ukraine war

The uMkhonto WeSizwe (MK) Party has refused to take accountability for the men who were sent to Russia under false pretences of gaining employment in the party and forced instead to fight in the war against Ukraine. 

This is according to Thulani Mahlangu, spokesperson for the families of the 17 South Africans fighting in Russia’s war.

Mahlungu spoke to Clement Manyathela on Radio 702, revealing that the remaining 13 men stuck in Russia will soon be returning home. 

He said 12 of the remaining men will return within days, with the last man to follow in the near future, as a limb amputation from the conflict keeps him in medical care. 

Mahlangu said that the ordeal has been extremely difficult for the families of these men, ranging between the ages of 19 and 45.

“When they were sent on the front line, they didn’t use their phone, their phones were confiscated, and then families lost contact with them,” he said. 

“They expect then that they might be killed, so it was a great relief knowing that they’re still alive.”

It has been confirmed that all of the men are alive and well. Four of the men have already returned to South Africa. They were taken into police custody, where they provided statements, and are now with their families. 

According to Mahlangu, a further 35 South Africans are fighting in Russia at the moment, and discussions between President Cyril Ramaphosa and President Vladimir Putin have been productive, with both parties agreeing to get South Africans home. 

The 17 men being returned were sent to Russia under the false pretence that they would receive training and then return to South Africa and be employed as bodyguards within the MK Party or in government departments, Mahlangu explained. 

Mahlangu explained that despite the party being implicated in the human trafficking, it did not take any accountability for the men and did not have any contact with the affected families. 

MK party funding used to send South Africans to war

Mahlangu explained that it was not the MK Party itself that had a hand in sending the men to the Russian front lines, but rather an individual within the party: leader Jacob Zuma’s daughter Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, who was to blame. 

Zuma-Sambudla resigned as an MK MP last year after she was found to have facilitated sending the men to Russia. She claimed that she did not knowingly send the men to the war, but that she was told the men would undergo legitimate paramilitary training. 

The spokesperson confirmed that the money used to purchase the flight tickets that took the 17 men to Russia was taken out of the MK Party’s account. 

“In the MKP, there’s no resolution or agreement with these guys that they’ll go to Russia; it’s Duduzile who facilitated everything to get them abroad because she has access to the account, she bought tickets for them to fly to Russia,” he said. 

Despite the party funding the travel for the men, and the daughter of the party leader having facilitated the travel, the party has not been in touch with the families at all. 

During a press briefing on Zuma-Sambudla’s resignation, MK Party Chairperson Nathi Nhleko tried to distance the party from the matter, saying that the leader’s daughter acted alone.

Mahlangu said that the only people who have tried to help the families of the 17 men from the ranks of MK are former MK leader Jabulani Khumalo and his followers within the party. 

“He’s the only person, the only group helping the families to get these guys back, they have been in contact with the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) and the office of the president,” Mahlangu said. 

Khumalo founded and registered the party in September 2023, ahead of the country’s seventh democratic elections.

Khumalo was expelled from the party in April 2024 and has since launched multiple legal challenges against Zuma for taking over the party he formed.