Initiates die barely a day after circumcision

AT LEAST two initiates are confirmed to have died in the rite of passage kraals of KwaNdebele in Mpumalanga‚ barely a day after undergoing initiation.

However‚ Ndebele King Makhosonke Mabena II‚ speaking through a spokesman‚ said unconfirmed reports put the death toll at six.

Last Sunday thousands of boys in KwaNdebele began their two-month seclusion to undergo initiation‚ a sacred rite of passage that has been marred by fatalities.

In 2013 31 youngsters due to negligence perished and botched circumcisions.

Most deaths were blamed on preventable complications‚ such as excessive bleeding and exposure to extremely cold conditions.

Mpumalanga police spokesman‚ Brigadier Leonard Hlathi‚ said two cases of culpable homicide have been reported where initiates experienced complications that led to their deaths.

“The two victims were registered as initiates on the 25th of April at KwaMhlanga and Kwaggafontein.

“The 21-year-old young men met their demise the following day at health care centres‚ KwaMhlanga hospital and Kwaggafontein he said.

Hlathi said no one had been arrested.

Ndebele king’s spokesman‚ Msilingwa Mabena‚ said unconfirmed reports were that the number of deaths had reached a total of six.

Mabena sent condolences to the bereaved families‚ saying investigations must be conducted and any one found to have acted negligently must face the full might of the law.

“The King is also pleading with the Ndebele nation to stop playing marbles with our cultures and traditions because this would spell its demise‚” he said. — TMG clinic‚ respectively