Forty boys killed in botched circumcisions in South Africa , moratorium declared

[Liberal_in_LA]

Forty boys killed in botched circumcisions in South Africa
From: NewsCore July 01, 2010

BOTCHED circumcisions in South Africa killed 40 boys and put over 100 in the hospital this month, a health official said.

The boys, who were taken into rural areas and circumcised as part of traditional rites of passage, died from gangrene, dehydration and pneumonia, said Sizwe Kupelo, health department spokesman for Eastern Cape province.

Mr Kupelo said practitioners of the rite are often not trained to carry out the procedure and can circumcise up to 50 boys with the same knife without sterilising it in between.

"In some cases boys were not circumcised but mutilated," he said.

"They use herbs to clean, hence this thing becomes gangrenous and infected," he said.

Mr Kupelo said that the tradition was being exploited by young men in the eastern region of the province, rather than elders who should carry out the procedure.

"There's also an element of commercialisng this whole thing. There are no seasoned and experienced traditional surgeons. Everybody's just doing it for profit purposes and there's no proper coordination."

The latest death occurred on Tuesday in the town of Tsolo, where a 19-year-old initiate died shortly after being admitted to hospital.

The death toll prompted traditional leaders to declare a moratorium on circumcisions in parts of the province earlier this month.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/forty-boys-killed-in-botched-circumcisions-in-south-africa/story-e6frf7jx-1225886438305