Initiation slaughter continues despite crackdowns
· Citizen
Tragedy has become a grim perennial ritual in South Africa’s winter initiation season. The 2026 winter initiation season is no different, with a death toll of at least 43 initiates, more than 100 criminal cases linked to illegal initiation practices opened and dozens of illegal initiation schools shut down.
Bleak numbers of initiation season
As of 12 July 2026, a total of 35 initiates had lost their lives, 12 abductions had been reported, 58 illegal initiation schools were opened, 42 of these have been closed, 180 initiates have been rescued, 75 have been hospitalised, three assault cases and one injury have been reported, while law enforcement agencies have opened 150 criminal cases, resulting in 40 arrests.
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The deaths, abductions and maiming continue unabated, despite years of awareness campaigns, stricter legislation, increased policing and repeated promises of “zero deaths”; young men continue to lose their lives in what should be a sacred rite of passage.
Yet the mounting enforcement efforts have once again failed to prevent families from burying sons who left home expecting to return as men.
Traditional initiation remains one of South Africa’s most important cultural rites among several communities, including AmaXhosa, Basotho, Bapedi, AmaNdebele and Vhavenda.
For generations, the practice has marked the transition from boyhood to adulthood through teachings on responsibility, discipline, respect and cultural identity.
On 8 April 2026, Ndzundza Traditional Authority’s Thuli Mahlangu, who assumed the traditional leadership title Madolo II in Manyebethwana in Mpumalanga, led a contingent of 24 boys entrusted to him by their families to undergo the sacred Ndebele rite of passage for the first time.
He argued that the overwhelming majority of legally recognised initiation schools complete each season without fatalities.
“All of my boys return without any complications. It is very saddening that boys have to die to become men. The government is trying with safety campaigns launched months in advance. Provincial Initiation Coordinating Committees inspect registered schools. Parents are urged to verify that schools, traditional surgeons and traditional nurses are properly registered. Police conduct raids on illegal initiation schools, while health officials prepare emergency response teams,” he explained.
Illegal initiation schools
Madolo II lamented that despite all these interventions, by the middle of almost every initiation season, headlines once again focus on death tolls rather than successful cultural ceremonies.
Illegal initiation schools often pop up in remote rural areas, making monitoring difficult, while some families continue to send initiates to unregistered schools because they are cheaper or due to community pressure.
His experience is that successful schools have shown that those with properly trained traditional surgeons, experienced caregivers, medical screening, community oversight and strict compliance with regulations have consistently avoided deaths.
“The ritual itself is not unsafe when conducted responsibly. The issue that we have is criminal elements exploiting the tradition for financial gain. Illegal initiation schools often operate outside regulatory oversight, employ unqualified traditional surgeons, ignore medical standards and admit underage initiates without proper consent. These schools are responsible for many of the deaths, dehydration cases, infections, assaults and kidnappings reported each year,” Madolo II said.
Minister wants parents to play a role
Velenkosini Hlabisa, the minister of cooperative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta), has said that the safety of initiates was a shared responsibility.
He said government alone cannot eliminate these tragedies and that success depends on stronger collaboration between families, traditional leaders, communities, law enforcement agencies, healthcare professionals, municipalities, educators and all stakeholders entrusted with safeguarding this sacred cultural practice.
The minister said parents and guardians have a critical role to play.
“They must ensure that their children attend only legally registered initiation schools and must satisfy themselves that the school, traditional surgeon and traditional nurse are duly authorised in accordance with the law,” Hlabisa said.
Parents should remain actively involved throughout the initiation process and report any suspicious or illegal activities to the relevant authorities, the minister said, and that parental neglect and the failure to verify the legitimacy of initiation schools place young lives at unnecessary risk.