Tutu Zondo
A large group of activists marched to Parliament on Friday to honour Andile Ntuthela, affectionately known as Lulu, who was brutally murdered in Kariega in the Eastern Cape.
Members of the LGBTI + community led the march and handed over a memorandum to the ANC Women's League.
A suspect appeared in court this week for Ntuthela's murder after his charred remains were found in a grave in the yard of a house in Kwanobuhle last Saturday.
Police believe that his sexual orientation could have been the motive for the crime.
March organiser, Tutu Zondo said the demonstration was also part of a grieving process, mourning all lives lost due to homophobia.
"Our community felt this on a personal level. This isn't just an exercise in politics. This wasn't us just trying to be seen, but us publicly grieving the injustices that are happening to our community on a daily basis," he said.
Zondo said among the demands in the memorandum includes the passing of the Hate Crime Bill and the need for sensitivity training of police officials on how to handle gender-based violence cases.
He said they presented their memorandum to a representative of the ANC Women's League in the hope that these issues would be addressed in parliament.
Meanwhile, well-known celebrity Somizi Mhlongo tweeted that he visited Ntuthela's family on Thursday and would be back for the next court date of Luvuyo Jonas who was appeared in court in connection with the gruesome murder.
He was remanded in custody to 1 June.
