Zuma family rift deepens as daughter lays human-trafficking complaint against sister

The Zuma family has been thrust into a storm of controversy after Nkosazana Bonganini Zuma-Mncube opened a criminal case against her sister, Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, accusing her of playing a role in the recruitment of 17 young South African men who allegedly ended up in a Ukrainian conflict zone.

Zuma-Mncube, the eldest daughter of former president Jacob Zuma, laid the charges at Sandton police station, alleging that her sister, along with associates Siphokazi Xuma and Blessing Khoza, misled the men with promises of work and training opportunities in Russia. She claims the recruits were then handed over to a mercenary group operating in Ukraine — a situation she believes amounts to trafficking, fraud and unlawful involvement in foreign military activity.

Eight of the 17 men are reportedly her own relatives, a fact she says strengthened her resolve to take action. According to her account, many of the recruits did not fully understand the nature of the journey they were embarking on, nor the conditions awaiting them on arrival. She has described the ordeal as “an exploitation of desperation” and urged authorities to intensify efforts to return the men safely to South Africa.

Government officials have confirmed that they are aware of distress calls from some of the men and have begun diplomatic inquiries into how South African citizens became entangled in a foreign conflict. The investigation is expected to examine possible violations of the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act and the laws governing South Africans’ involvement in overseas armed operations.

The allegations have sent shockwaves through political circles, not only because they involve the children of a former head of state but because they touch on the increasingly lucrative and often murky world of private military recruitment. Within the Zuma family, the case has laid bare a painful internal divide, turning private tension into a public rupture.