A report by South African -based NGO, Sonke Gender Justice, claiming that 42 youths passed away as a result of customary illegal circumcisions has been rehashed.
The figures come in the wake of pledges by the country’s provincial governments for the national police service to exert “zero tolerance” on “illegal initiation schools.”
- Sonke Gender Justice reported 42 deaths from illegal circumcision rituals within just three weeks in 2012.
- Despite 2025 rumors, South African officials have not publicly confirmed any fatalities this initiation season.
- The UN’s circumcision programs in Africa have drawn criticism for fueling a profit-driven sub-economy.
The practice is considered a rite of passage for boys belonging to the country’s 10-million-strong Xhosa ethnic group. It entails taking youths from their homes–sometimes against their will–into huts in the bush where they are kept for a month.
Reports indicate that illegal circumcisions are executed with a razor blade
Community members gather outdoors during a mass circumcision ceremony amid reports of tragic mutilations.
The process, which is steeped in spirituality and tribal lore, is treated as the turning point from boyhood to manhood.
But over the last three decades of South Africa’s democracy, it has riddled the country’s reputation with dozens (sometimes as many as 100) of fatalities every winter.
In 2012, Sonke Gender Justice reported that 42 boys had succumbed to the procedure, which, in illegal circumstances, can be executed with anything from a handmade knife to a razor blade
Boys walking in a mass circumcision ceremony supervised by adults in an outdoor rural area with buildings in the background
“The figures of young boys dying at initiation schools are shocking,” the advocacy reported.
“The death toll, as at July 11, was 42, in just three weeks. According to reports, this is nearly double last year’s figure of 26.”
A local NGO describes the practice as a “cultural practice” that “robs young people of their future”
Group of young boys wrapped in blankets sitting closely together after a mass circumcision ceremony with many injured victims
While the fatalities were as unmissable as the voids left by the deceased victims, Sisonke –which translates to “we are together” in Zulu, the language of another South African endemic group–claims they were treated with “silence.”
“Why do we, as a caring, compassionate, democratic society, look the other way?” the missive lamented .
“Why do we allow certain cultural practices to rob young people of their future?
“What it means to be a ‘proper’ man and the fact that it has been reduced to the practice of circumcision, is detrimental not only to the young men who go through the process, but to society as a whole.”
The report follows last year’s 93 fatalities and 11 amputations
Kenya Ministry of Health consent form for operation related to mass circumcision ceremony with serious complications.
In the country’s northern province of Mpumalanga, the department for Co-Operative Governance, Human Settlements and Traditional Affairs issued a stern warning against traditional practitioners.
The warning, which was published on May 30 this year, called on parents to be wary of “bogus traditional surgeons intending to run initiation schools without a legal permit.”
Part of the government ‘s measures to practice, which the majority of the ethnic groups’ boys see as an obligation for the fear of never being seen as a grown man, was ensuring that trained medics perform the practice.
Close-up of hands holding a crude knife and razor blade used in a mass circumcision ceremony linked to deaths and mutilations.
The communique noted at the time of publication that it had already “received a total of 405 applications to conduct initiation schools this year and approved 403 of those, whereas two of them were declined due to non-compliance.”
It went on to say that the initiation season was scheduled to run from June 21 to July 21, and that anyone operating outside those parameters was liable to prosecution.
The warning comes in the wake of 2024’s 93 fatalities. It was reported by the local News 24 that “11 boys suffered life-altering injuries, including penile amputations.”
No mention has been made of the internationally circulating reports about 2025 in South Africa
George Masebe Hospital entrance where victims of a mass circumcision ceremony were treated after lives were claimed.
These fatal initiation practices have drawn attention to themselves and been followed hawkishly by the public for the last three decades.
Despite numerous outlets’ claims that 39 initiates succumbed to the practice in 2025, oddly, there have been no indications of fatalities following the close of the season this year—not by the South African national or local governments, or the country’s media outlets.
The United Nations has been called out for its role in mass circumcisions in Africa
Group of men in traditional attire participating in a mass circumcision ceremony with many boys involved in the ritual.
Going on its voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) project , it appears that the United Nations also promotes mass circumcision in Africa under the belief that circumcised men are less likely to contract HIV.
According to Child Rights International Network ( CRIN ), it has since become a multimillion-dollar sub-economy that thrives off Africa’s AIDS pandemic.
A group of people sitting and standing outdoors under a tree during a mass circumcision ceremony gathering.
“Circumcision seems like the answer to those working within the global AIDS response, because the number of people who can be targeted for circumcision business runs into hundreds of millions,” the advocacy claims.
“Every year, millions of male children would be available to keep the programs profitable.”
The public is appalled
Screenshot of a tweet describing a horrific tragedy linked to a mass circumcision ceremony causing deaths and injuries.
Twitter comment reading That is horrible in response to a post about mass circumcision ceremony claims.
Screenshot of a social media post condemning horrific mass circumcision ceremony causing deaths and mutilations of boys.
Screenshot of a social media post discussing the tragic mass circumcision ceremony and the need for safety in traditions.
Screenshot of a tweet by Joel Pickell expressing distress about a horrifying mass circumcision ceremony causing multiple deaths.
Tweet discussing cultural traditions and the need for regulation after mass circumcision ceremony causes multiple boy fatalities.
Screenshot of a tweet discussing a mass circumcision ceremony turning deadly, highlighting a crisis and call for accountability.
User tweet expressing emotional reaction to horrifying mass circumcision ceremony with multiple casualties and mutilations.
Twitter user old skater reacts to a mass circumcision ceremony tragedy with a message expressing shock and disbelief.
Screenshot of a tweet reacting to a horrifying mass circumcision ceremony with tragic deaths and many boys mutilated
Social media post reacting to horrifying mass circumcision ceremony causing multiple boys’ deaths and injuries.
Tweet by Single Chirp replying to @nypost questioning the safety of rusty old spears in a mass circumcision ceremony discussion.
Tweet from Michael T Megois referencing mass circumcision ceremony deaths, highlighting 93 boys died last year in similar event.
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