http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20851036

The South African government has sought to clarify remarks by President Jacob Zuma that angered dog lovers.

Mr Zuma was quoted as saying at a rally on Wednesday that having pet dogs was part of white - not African - culture.

But presidential spokesman Mac Maharaj said Mr Zuma was simply warning against loving animals more than humans beings.

He said Mr Zuma's main message was the need to "decolonise the African mind" in South Africa, where white-minority rule ended in 1994.

South Africa's Mercury newspaper reports that Mr Zuma told thousands of supporters at a rally in KwaZulu-Natal province that people who spent money on buying a dog, taking it to the vet and for walks belonged to white culture.

There was also a new generation of young Africans who were trying to adopt the lifestyles of other race groups, Mr Zuma said.

"Even if you apply any kind of lotion and straighten your hair you will never be white," Mr Zuma was quoted as saying.
Dogs and workers

His comments sparked an angry response on social media, with some pet-lovers accusing him of indifference to animals, while others accused him of racism.
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The message merely emphasised the need not to elevate our love for our animals above our love for other human beings”

Mac Maharaj Presidential spokesman

In a statement aimed at diffusing the row, Mr Maharaj said the president's remarks were aimed at ensuring that black people did not behave in a way that was detrimental to creating a "caring African society" in South Africa.

"More than that, the essential message from the president was the need to decolonise the African mind, post-liberation, to enable the previously oppressed African majority to appreciate and love who they are and uphold their own culture," he said.

"They should not feel pressured to be assimilated into the minority cultures."

Mr Maharaj said there were still some South Africans who "sit with their dogs in front in a van or truck with a worker at the back in pouring rain or extremely cold weather".

Some people also do not "hesitate to rush their dogs to veterinary surgeons for medical care when they are sick while they ignore workers or relatives who are also sick in the same households", Mr Maharaj said.

"This is not to say that animals should not be loved or cared for," he added.

"The message [of Mr Zuma] merely emphasised the need not to elevate our love for our animals above our love for other human beings."

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South Africa's president says a dog should not be man's best friend.

President Jacob Zuma made critical remarks about pet care that touch on sensitive race relations in South Africa, which was dominated by whites until apartheid was dismantled almost two decades ago, The Star newspaper reported Thursday.

The newspaper cited Zuma as saying in a speech Wednesday that the idea of having a pet is part of "white culture" and that people should focus on family welfare.

The president's office sought to clarify his remarks, saying he was encouraging "the previously oppressed African majority" to uphold its own culture. It also suggested the way in which the comments were reported, rather than the comments themselves, was divisive.

The president's remarks triggered a flurry of retorts from animal lovers on Twitter and other social media.

"Will I become 'more African' if I kick my dog, President Zuma," one person commented tartly.

Another lamented: "He keeps on dividing this country."

And another humorist wrote: "Well, that pretty much rules out that photo opportunity with Zuma, the Obamas, & their pet dog, Bo, in the White House."

The backdrop to the dog debate is the legacy of Western colonialism in Africa, as well as the bitter struggle against apartheid in South Africa that culminated in the first democratic elections in 1994. Poverty and economic imbalances remain a source of deep strain in the nation of 50 million.

During his speech to an appreciative crowd in KwaZulu-Natal, Zuma's home province, the president said people who love dogs more than people have a "lack of humanity" and that some people are trying in vain to "emulate whiteness," The Star reported.

"Even if you apply any kind of lotion and straighten your hair, you will never be white," he reportedly said.

In a statement, the South African presidency said Zuma was trying to "decolonize the African mind post-liberation" and enable people to take pride in their heritage and not feel pressure to adopt customs of minority cultures. Animals can be cared for, was the message, but not at the expense of people.

It said he gave examples of people loving animals more than other human beings — letting a dog sit in the cab of a truck while a worker has to sit in the back in the rain, or rushing an animal to the veterinarian while ignoring sick relatives or workers.

Zuma has often said he seeks to protect South Africa's diversity and unify its disparate groups, but he has occasionally stirred controversy. In 2006, as deputy president, he said same-sex marriages, which are today protected under South African law, were "a disgrace to the nation and to God."

ARE WE TRYING TOO HARD TO BE LIKE THE WHITE MAN

What I find interesting is the way he is strongly criticicized for his views which seem fine to me.Seems we live in a divided world.

Zuma may have his opion has long has I am aloud to disagree with it. The Khoi san the very first South Africans had dogs those dogs where the precurser to the rhodsion ridge back

There is hardly any Human group that does not have dogs so be sure you understand the issue before posting. I fail to see the relevance of Khoisan having dogs. Every one has dogs and Zuma is not saying do not own dogs.

Zuma is talking about

THE NATURE OF THE RELATIONSHIP

between humans and dogs. To most Africans dogs are domesticated animals not family members

I do not believe the Khoisan kiss their dogs

In Germany and Denmark e.g it is legal to have sex with dogs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoophilia_and_the_law

Sharing space with dog in the house is not part of African culture

Is this African

What Zuma is saying is is a black man is doing or aspiring to be doing stuff like this with dogs then he is suffering from colonial mentality