New Delhi: A nine-year-old South African boy, who grabbed international headlines in 2013 for marrying a 61-year-old to please his ancestors, renewed his wedding vows last week in front of village elders.
But the union between Saneie Masilela, 9, and Helen Shabangu, 62, is not a marriage in the true sense of the word; the pair tied the knot in a ritual aimed at pleasing their ancestors.
Saneie, from Tshwane, became one of the world's youngest grooms last year when the then-eight-year-old married a 61-year-old Helen at his home.
He had claimed that he was told by his ancestors to form a union with the mother-of-five, who is already married to another man, Alfred Shabangu, 67.
In spite of his tender age, Saneie's family acquiesced to the marriage, gifting £500 to the bride and a further £1,000 for the wedding day itself.
He claimed he had been told by his ancestors to form a union with the mother-of-five, who is already married to Alfred Shabangu, 67.
However, in spite of his tender age, Saneie's family acquiesced to the marriage, gifting £500 to the bride and a further £1,000 for the wedding day itself.
Tradition states that a couple should declare their vows in both their homes so, this year, Saneie and Helen partook in another ceremony at the bride's house in Ximhungwe, in Mpumalanga, South Africa.
There was an international outcry the first time the pair wed, but the couple are married only symbolically and do not live together or have sexual relations.
