President Ramaphosa of South Africa: ‘Our nation mourns the young lives lost in Enyobeni tavern tragedy’

Dear Fellow South African, just over a week ago, in the early hours of a Sunday morning, families in the township of Scenery Park outside East London, received news that every parent prays they never get to hear. They were told that 21 of their children had been found dead, in a tavern. The youngest child was only 13 years old.

The police investigation into the tragedy is proceeding apace. Flowing from the investigations, the Buffalo City Metro is looking into whether the tavern violated any municipal regulations. As we prepare to lay these young people to rest this week, our thoughts and prayers are with the families who are struggling to come to terms with this unspeakable horror.

We commend the Eastern Cape provincial government for assisting the affected families, as well as AVBOB that has pledged to assist the families with the burials.