Four initiates died after they were kicked around by their caregivers and ordered to stand naked in a cold and snowy morning in Mpumalanga in July.
According to an investigative report compiled for the provincial department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) and seen by Sunday World, the initiates were kicked until “some of them fainted”.
However, it is not clear why they were subjected to such “terrible punishment”.
The incident happened at an initiation school at Goedehoop Farm in Leslie near Bethal.
Sunday World has established that the school, which had 11 initiates, is owned by a man only identified as Mr Ditshego.
According to the report, four caregivers were arrested, and some of them confessed on camera that the initiates died as a result of being abused.
The victims were aged between 16 and 27.
“According to information we have received from our investigators, the initiates were ordered to stand outside in the snow at 3am,” according to the report.
“It is still not clear why they were subjected to such terrible punishment by the caregivers. The caregivers took turns kicking the initiates with safety boots until some of them fainted.
“The abuse that the initiates suffered came to light after a recent incident in which the initiates died after being reportedly exposed to coldness and beaten up.
“The information at our disposal shows that after the initiates were subjected to that abuse, they were taken inside a kraal, where they were forced to cover themselves with wet blankets. Some of them were found dead in the morning.”
Sunday World has seen some of the confession videos.
In one of the videos, a caregiver clad in an orange overall was asked whether they killed the initiates.
The man responded: “We can say that. It’s not helpful to deny it. We can’t deny it. But it was not our intention to kill them. We had no idea it would end like this.”
The Customary Initiation Act of 2021 prohibits the assault of initiates as a form of disciplinary method.
Ditshego conceded that the initiates died at his school but refused to divulge more information.
“I am just like you, I don’t know what exactly happened. Let us wait for post-mortem results and then take it from there,” said Ditshego.
“But I am sure that whatever they told you is not true, because those who gave you the information even failed to give you my full name.
“I prefer that you come to me so that we can talk face-to-face.”
Lindiwe Msibi, spokesperson for Cogta in Mpumalanga, said she is working on the response relating to the deaths of the four initiates.
Mpumalanga police spokesperson Brigadier Selvy Mohlala confirmed the incident, saying the police are awaiting post-modern results.
“Tomorrow, 4 August 2023, marks exactly three weeks since four initiates lost their lives in one of the initiation schools at Goedehoop Farm in Leslie,” said Mohlala.
“The four victims aged between 16 and 27 were supposed to be part of the seven initiates who will be graduating tomorrow [Friday].
“According to [a] report, it is alleged that the initiates lost their lives on Friday, 14 July 2023 at about 7am.
“An investigation continues as the investigation team is in constant consultation with the initiation school, and hopefully there will be a breakthrough soon.”
It is not the first time initiation schools in Mpumalanga Highveld are accused of abusing the initiates.
In June, three initiates escaped from the initiation school in Kriel after they were reportedly beaten for refusing to eat the vomit of one of the caregivers.
The escapees were later taken to another school to finalize their initiation process.
Since the initiation season started in winter, at least 20 initiates have died in Eastern Cape, four lost their lives in Mpumalanga, while three deaths were reported in Limpopo.
The national Cogta department has not yet released statistics for this year’s initiation season deaths.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa.
