Hlabisa threatens to shut down initiation schools in some EC areas if deaths continue
At least 28 initiates have died in the Eastern Cape since the start of the summer initiation season.
COGTA Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa on 21 November 2024 among ministers leading the multidisciplinary teams in government responsible for the national response to instances of food borne illnesses. Picture: GCIS
CAPE TOWN - The Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Velenkosini Hlabisa, is threatening to shut down the initiation of boys in the Amathole, Chris Hani, Alfred Nzo and OR Tambo District Municipalities if the deaths of initiates continue.
At least 28 initiates have died in the Eastern Cape since the start of the summer initiation season as amaXhosa boys' rite of passage into manhood.
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Hlabisa has called for an urgent meeting with traditional leaders in hotspot areas such as Mthatha, Lusikisiki, Port St Johns, Butterworth, and Duncan Village.
More than 250 boys have died in the province in the past six years after attending initiation schools.
Hlabisa said traditional leaders in the affected areas must collectively find solutions to stop these fatalities.
"In the illegal schools, there's no protocol that is being followed, and people who are doing this culture, they just are unscrupulous people, some of whom are just interested in money rather than the lives of these children. So, going into the winter season, we will adopt zero tolerance in illegal schools."