With less than three weeks to go before the winter initiation season starts, the Khayelitsha Initiation Forum has expressed concern that hundreds of young men might have nowhere to undergo the cultural practice, claiming the City has sold off a major portion of land used to perform the ritual for years.
The forum was one among several organisations summoned by the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities (CRL Rights Commission) to testify in an inquiry into the deaths of young men at initiation schools in the Western Cape.
The commission hearings were also held across the country. The commission is investigating the death of initiates; botched circumcision and amputations of genitals; assaults; and dubious traditional practitioners.
Forum chairperson Thembelani Mlotywa yesterday testified that the land, on the corner of Spine Road and Mew Way, has been sold for R4.5 million to make way for a shopping centre.
“We don’t have our own permanent site to perform the tradition and that is worrying because every time the season is closer we have to go and beg to be accommodated on an open space, which should not be the case,” Mlotywa said.
City spokesperson Hayley van der Woude said the city would respond once it had investigated the particulars of the erf.
In 2014, illegal occupation of land in Philippi East forced initiates off the land they were using on which to conduct the ritual.
During the December initiation season, at least 28 initiates died nationally, with four deaths recorded in the Western cape. Mlotywa told the commission a shortage of land remained a stumbling block in keeping the tradition alive in Khayelitsha.
“We were surprised to learn from a sub-council 9 meeting that the land has been sold without even consulting us. Selling the land but knowing that we use it for traditional purposes is a sign of disrespect for our tradition.
“Where are the young men expected to go?” Mlotywa said.
The provincial Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport was also summoned to give evidence. Its director, Jane Moleleki, said parents needed to take their children for a medical check-up before sending them to an initiation school.
“The causes of death is not necessarily the ritual itself, but other health complications,” she said.
Referring to the deaths, Moleleki said: “We are sad about what happened last season, it was unexpected and should be avoided.”
Moleleki echoed Mlotywa’s comments, saying that there were limited parcels of land available for initiates in the province and that was worrying.
She said a major challenge facing her department was that there was no legislation governing initiation, which made it difficult to prosecute anyone suspected of wrongdoing.
Moleleki said in most cases the department would be expected to lodge a murder case, but limited legislation made this difficult.
“Traditional surgeons hide information from us, for instance they don’t tell when one of the initiates need medical attention, making it difficult for us for our oversight.”
Responding to claims of the sale of the initiation site in Khayelitsha, CRL Rights Commission chairperson Thoko Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said: “This is a very serious political dynamic. How do you take the history of 20 years and sell it for R4.5m?
‘‘The municipality can’t treat people with disdain. If you have been using the land for 20 years it can’t just be sold. ‘This thing of land is a national disaster.
‘‘The municipality should have investigated (who is using the land) and respect what is happening on the land.”
Mkhwanazi-Xaluva said traditional surgeons should be trained and accredited before performing any ritual on the young men.
“As a nation we have neglected this tradition for a very long time. This tradition is not institutionalised and from now going forward there must be plans to regulate it.”