Crisis, tragedy as initiates die

EIGHT initiates have died in the Eastern Cape and more than 50 have been admitted to hospital for botched circumcisions after only a week into the new initiation season.

Authorities have described this as a crisis and a tragedy. With about three weeks left, the fear is that more initiates could die.

Some of the more than 50 initiates who have been hospitalised could undergo penile amputations or debridement – the removal of dead, damaged or infected tissue to improve the healing potential of the remaining healthy tissue

Both traditional leaders and government have expressed shock at the deaths. Provincial health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo said some of the deaths could have been avoided had parents not prevented health officials from rescuing initiates from an initiation school.

Kupelo said that when the officials did random checks, they were denied access to the school by parents. A day later, an initiate died.

"I believe that the parents who prevented the officials should be found responsible as well. They must be held accountable for the deaths of their sons and be arrested," Kupelo said.

Kupelo expressed discontent at the low conviction rate for initiation lawbreakers and appealed to the National Prosecuting Authority and Justice Department to be harsher to discourage further initiate killings.

"Murder is the right charge for initiate killers."

He said in one of the initiation schools at KwaDosi village near Mthatha, traditional nurses were drunk and could not even move.

Health MEC Dr Pumza Dyantyi, speaking at a safe-initiation prayer meeting in Lusikisiki on Saturday, said that it was shocking that so many initiates had already died.

"This is a sad season, eight initiates die within a week. Even one death is too many," Dyantyi said.

She said the monitoring team rescued 25 initiates from Bizana and transferred them to the Lusikisiki rescue centre run by the Community Development Foundation of South Africa (Codefsa) in partnership with the government and traditional leaders.

She said her department had hired 37 vehicles for monitoring in the OR Tambo district and Social Development dispatched 30 other vehicles and 300 male social workers for counselling.

"In an effort to address the crisis, we are working closely with traditional leaders. General practitioners, who are male and have been circumcised, have been contracted to assist. A sum of R20-million has been set aside for all these commitments but we need more funds," Dyantyi said.

Stakeholders, including Contralesa and the Eastern Cape House of Traditional Leaders, described initiation deaths in the Eastern Cape as a disaster. They said government invention had to be proactive rather than reactive.

Codefsa executive director Nkululeko Nxesi, whose organisation is assisting curbing initiation deaths in Eastern Pondoland, said another rescue centre would be established in Nyandeni this week and later in other areas. The first one was established in Lusikisiki last year and helped save lives of many initiates.

Kupelo fears for the worst. "We just pray that it will not be the disaster of last year.

"But ourhospitals in Nyandeni are already overcrowded and daily operations disrupted. We have already removed 16 initiates from St Barnabas Hospital to Isilimela Hospital," he said.

Provincial head of department Dr Thobile Mbengashe told traditional leaders and government officials his department's intervention was to assist to ensure the age-old rite was not diminished.

"We want to ensure that this beautiful rite continues, but ensure safety and that there are no injuries," Mbengashe said. - Lulamile Feni