Johnathan Paoli
THE death toll during the summer initiation season in the Eastern Cape has surged to 28, as authorities confirm the loss of lives during the rite of passage, after the death of two initiates and their brother who were shot and killed over the weekend.
The family of the two boys from Butterworth said they were devastated after they were shot and killed, one week after another initiate was gunned down in Gqeberha, forcing some parents to have to take their children out of initiation schools.
The chairperson of the Eastern Cape House of Traditional Leaders, Mpumalanga Gwadiso, has expressed concern over the escalating death toll.
“We have done everything in preparation for the initiation season with our partners. We have gone to areas talking to parents, doing awareness even to be initiated in terms of advising them and making an emphasis that drinking of water is a solution to the healing of the body,” Gwadiso said.
Gwadiso, said that the department must work with SAPS to ensure the other initiates’ safety to prevent any further possible death.
Earlier this month, four brothers were shot at an initiation school in Ngcwazi A/A Mntla location in the province, following another three initiates who were shot dead at an initiation school in Ngqamakhwe, all in the Eastern Cape.
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