Parliament, Tuesday, 26 October 2024 - The Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) today urged traditional leaders, communities and families to cooperate to protect the lives of initiates and not tolerate any negligence that leads to mutilation, torture or death.
The National Initiation Oversight Committee (NIOC), the Department of Traditional Affairs, leaders of various houses of traditional leaders, the Eastern Cape Department of COGTA and the Provincial Initiation Coordinating Committee briefed the committee on readiness for the summer initiation season.
The committee heard that the summer initiation season has started in many provinces, and registration and screenings have been done.
The committee noted the preparations undertaken as satisfactory to meet the needs of the initiation season, as this was a concern given reports of deaths and mutilation that have been reported over the years. According to the committee, no one should participate without explicit consent and the support of families, who must take full responsibility for the well-being of the initiate.
The committee also stated that registration should be done according to the law and that no unregistered initiation sites, traditional surgeons or nurses should be allowed to operate. The committee also urged that all criminal activities be reported to the police and swift action taken to bring perpetrators to book. It also urged medical screenings to ensure that no one neglects their health while undergoing initiation. The committee was encouraged that a lot of this work has been done, especially in the Eastern Cape.
The committee also supported training iingcibi and amakhankatha to ensure hygienic and safe operations and alerting hospitals and health workers to stand ready to intervene and rescue those at risk. The committee also supported the provision of water, food and personal protective equipment for all initiates to ensure the safety of everyone undergoing initiation.
Committee Chairperson Dr Zweli Mkhize said the committee also supports mobilising the South African Police Service to encourage timely arrests of perpetrators and the training prosecutors for effective prosecution and compliance with the law. "We believe that the cause of deaths must be immediately determined and, where transgressions are identified, the perpetrators are brought to book," he said.
The committee urged that the whole community, including amakhosi, religious leaders, civil society, media and social platforms assist in creating a positive environment to help prevent malpractice and eliminate misconceptions about the initiation process.
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The Chairperson said strong communication campaigns must be mounted to remove any miscommunication. "We support the message of the provincial government of the Eastern Cape of initiates returning alive."
The committee also supported a strong oversight role for traditional leaders and all spheres of government, including municipalities and provincial and national governments, particularly in providing additional resources, as it was indicated that there are challenges and resources are inadequate.
The committee noted the report on readiness and the work that had been done and resolved to prepare for an oversight visit to the Eastern Cape to get a first-hand perspective of how things are going.
Meanwhile, the committee also received a briefing from the Financial and Fiscal Commission (FCC) on local government finances, during which committee members interrogated the formula that determines the funding allocation for local government. The committee requested the FFC to submit a detailed report on this matter.
The committee also received an update on the Khoisan and Traditional Leaders Bill, which was expected to be tabled in Parliament at the end of October. Members heard that the department intends to approach the Constitutional Court to extend the deadline to finalise the Bill in Parliament by May 2025. The committee resolved to invite the minister to brief the committee and explain the fate of this Bill and the legal issues involved, among other things.
