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Funeral in SA for ID suicide man SA suspends ID suicide officials
(about 6 hours later)
A 22-year-old South African man who committed suicide after being refused identity documents he needed to start a job is being buried in KwaZulu-Natal. Two South African officials have been suspended in connection with the suicide of Skhumbuzo Mhlongo.
Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma will address the mourners at Skhumbuzo Mhlongo's funeral. The 22 year old committed suicide after being refused the identity documents he needed to start a job on Monday.
Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma announced the suspensions at the man's funeral.
"We cannot lose a life because of public servants who have forgotten that they are there to help the public and not there to act like kings," she said.
The minister broke down in tears before journalists earlier this week when she was telling them about the case.The minister broke down in tears before journalists earlier this week when she was telling them about the case.
She is expected to announce the outcome of an investigation. She said she suspected an official expected a bribe. If someone after coming from a Home Affairs office says he has lost hope to a point of ending his life, that cannot be acceptable it cannot be right and it cannot continue Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma
"The minister has vowed to leave no stone unturned to ensure that the perpetrators of this act are brought to book and indeed to safeguard against any other citizen of this country suffering the same fate," her spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa said in a statement. In his suicide note, Mr Mhlongo explained how an official had torn up his ID application, calling him a foreigner.
Complaint line Ms Dlamini-Zuma said her department was there to help make people's lives easier and not drive them to despair.
In his suicide note, Mr Mhlongo explained how an official had torn up his application, calling him a foreigner. "If someone after coming from a Home Affairs office says he has lost hope to a point of ending his life, that cannot be acceptable it cannot be right and it cannot continue," she said.
Spot inspections
The minister also paid a surprise visit to the Pinetown office where the incident happened.
The case moved Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma to tears
She said she found "a lot wrong with the office" and promised that her department would visit other offices in the country to inspect their day-to-day running.
The incident has prompted the Department of Home Affairs to set up a new telephone hotline for people to register complaints about civil servants.
The minister urged the public to use it and make their voices heard.
Her spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa said the suspended officials will soon be appearing before a disciplinary hearing.
The BBC's Pumza Fihlani in Johannesburg says the Department of Home Affairs has come under heavy criticism over the years for its inefficiency in issuing ID documents, birth certificates and passports, with some people claiming to have waited up to four years.The BBC's Pumza Fihlani in Johannesburg says the Department of Home Affairs has come under heavy criticism over the years for its inefficiency in issuing ID documents, birth certificates and passports, with some people claiming to have waited up to four years.
She points out it would be even more difficult to obtain the documents if you have no parents to vouch for your identity.She points out it would be even more difficult to obtain the documents if you have no parents to vouch for your identity.
In response to the case, the Department of Home Affairs has set up a hotline for people to register complaints about its civil servants: 0800-2044-76. Sibling carer
The line, which did not work when the BBC tried it on Monday, is now accepting calls. Mr Mhlongo, who was buried in Hillcrest near Durban in Kwa-Zulu Natal Province, had been due to start the new job at a factory which manufactures bird food on Monday.
Mr Mhlongo, who will be buried in Hillcrest near Durban in Kwa-Zulu Natal Province, had been due to start the new job at a factory which manufactures bird food on Monday. Mr Mamoepa said the Department of Social Development assisted the family with the burial arrangements.
Mr Mamoepa said the Department of Social Development has assisted the family with the burial arrangements.
Mr Mhlongo had been raised by his mother, who disappeared in 2000, leaving him to care for his younger siblings.Mr Mhlongo had been raised by his mother, who disappeared in 2000, leaving him to care for his younger siblings.
He had apparently been trying to get an ID card for some time without any luck and had been told to bring someone who could vouch for his nationality.He had apparently been trying to get an ID card for some time without any luck and had been told to bring someone who could vouch for his nationality.
But the official did not believe that the man he brought along was his father, tore up Mr Mhlongo's papers and called him a "kwere-kwere" - a derogatory term used for foreign nationals.But the official did not believe that the man he brought along was his father, tore up Mr Mhlongo's papers and called him a "kwere-kwere" - a derogatory term used for foreign nationals.
He apparently left the suicide note before hanging himself.He apparently left the suicide note before hanging himself.