Opposition party organiser killed before South Africa elections

Police are investigating the motive in murder of MKP coordinator as political killings rise during municipal elections.

Political parties set up campaign tents outside a polling station in the inner-city neighbourhood of Hillbrow in Johannesburg, South Africa November 3, 2026. [Kim Ludbrook/EPA]

An organiser from an opposition party has been killed in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province, raising concerns about political violence before Wednesday’s local government elections.

⁠Senior police spokesman Robert Netshiunda said on Tuesday that a murder investigation had been opened after Lastborn Shazi – identified by the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) – was shot dead late on Monday at his home while on a Zoom call coordinating the party’s election campaign.

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Police are investigating the motive, Netshiunda said.

South African police said last weekend that 20 murders involving political representatives, party members and supporters had been recorded during the municipal election period.

Last week, South African President ‌‌Cyril Ramaphosa ordered the deployment of more than 500 soldiers to KwaZulu-Natal to support police, who have ‌‌identified ‌‌more than 165 polling stations in the province as high-risk.

Political parties set up campaign tents outside a polling station in the inner-city neighbourhood of Hillbrow in Johannesburg, South Africa [Kim Ludbrook/EPA]

Voters on Wednesday will elect councillors, who will then choose mayors to oversee municipal services, including water, sanitation and rubbish collection.

Recent polls project the ⁠⁠MKP to emerge as the ⁠⁠largest party in the closely contested eThekwini metropolitan area – the economic hub of KwaZulu-Natal – and displace the governing African National ⁠⁠Congress (ANC) there.

Former President Jacob Zuma leads the MKP after ⁠⁠a bitter split with the ⁠⁠ANC in 2023. The party’s rise helped erode the ANC’s support in the 2024 national election.

The ANC lost its parliamentary majority in 2024 and formed a unity government with the Democratic Alliance (DA), the second-largest party, and smaller parties.

In the last municipal elections in 2021, the ANC lost control of several big cities. It governs others through coalitions.

警方正在调查MKP协调员被谋杀的动机，因为市政选举期间政治谋杀事件有所增加。

2026年11月3日，南非约翰内斯堡市中心希尔布罗区，各政党在投票站外搭建竞选帐篷。[Kim Ludbrook/EPA]

南非夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省一名反对党组织者被杀，引发了人们对周三地方政府选举前可能发生政治暴力的担忧。

高级警官发言人罗伯特·内特希恩达周二表示，拉斯特伯恩·沙齐（被民族之矛党 (MKP) 确认身份）周一晚在家中被枪杀，当时他正在通过 Zoom 会议协调该党的竞选活动。警方已对此展开谋杀调查。

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内特希恩达表示，警方正在调查作案动机。

南非警方上周末表示，在市政选举期间，共记录了 20 起涉及政治代表、政党成员和支持者的谋杀案。

上周，南非总统西里尔·拉马福萨下令向夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省部署 500 多名士兵，以支援警方。警方已将该省 165 多个投票站认定为高风险地点。

在南非约翰内斯堡市中心希尔布罗区的一个投票站外，各政党搭起了竞选帐篷。[Kim Ludbrook/EPA]

选民将于周三选举市议员，市议员们随后将选出市长来监督市政服务，包括供水、环卫和垃圾收集。

最近的民意调查预测，MKP 将在竞争激烈的埃特克维尼大都会区（夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省的经济中心）成为最大的政党，并取代执政的非洲人国民大会（ANC）。

前总统雅各布·祖马在2023年与非国大决裂后领导了MKP。该党的崛起削弱了非国大在2024年全国大选中的支持率。

非国大在 2024 年失去了议会多数席位，并与第二大党民主联盟（DA）和其他小党派组成了联合政府。

在2021年的上次市政选举中，非国大失去了对几个大城市的控制权。它通过联盟执政其他一些城市。