Forty-eight boys have been rescued from a male circumcision camp in Zambia following urgent complaints from parents about their children being abducted.
Officials confirmed to the BBC that one of the boys, who was on HIV medication, had not taken his anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs for two weeks.
These secretive traditional rite-of-passage ceremonies involve boys aged 10 to 17 spending up to six months in seclusion in the bush. Authorities revealed that the site, located on the outskirts of Livingstone town near a national wildlife park, was established without permission.
They alleged that the children were “caged” in unsanitary and hazardous conditions.
Three of the rescued boys were briefly hospitalized, some needing treatment for complications after circumcisions performed with razor blades.
The Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation (ZNBC) reported that one boy was suffering from bilharzia, a chronic illness caused by contaminated water that affects growth and brain development in children.
The initiation site, which had been set up two weeks prior, has since been destroyed by fire, according to the national broadcaster. Organizers of these camps often search for uncircumcised boys to undergo the “mukanda” ritual, sometimes forcibly taking them from schools.
Parents are not consulted, and teachers are often unable to prevent these actions. While some boys willingly participate, many are coerced and told they must adhere to the tradition.
Mainga Kabika, the top civil servant in the gender ministry, reprimanded the individual who established the camp on Monday. She led a team of officials from various ministries to Livingstone, a tourist destination for visitors to Victoria Falls, to investigate the parents’ complaints.
“We want to preserve our tradition but you have to follow regulations. You just don’t do things against the law like this,” Ms Kabika said.
According to Zambia’s Daily Mail newspaper, some boys at the circumcision camp had been physically abused by those in charge after attempting to escape at night, including the boy who needed ARVs.
Parents were reportedly contacted by phone and asked to pay up to $75 (£58) for expenses, despite not consenting to their child’s participation.
While surgical male circumcision is available in both public and private hospitals in Zambia and is often promoted as a method to reduce HIV infection, certain ethnic groups prefer the traditional approach.
This procedure usually takes place during the Southern Hemisphere winter to lessen the discomfort associated with healing, though the rite of passage is intended to test endurance.
The boys are expected to endure pain and harsh living conditions, such as sleeping on the bare ground without blankets, to demonstrate their transition from boyhood to manhood.
The initiation is shrouded in secrecy; discussing it is culturally taboo, and women are not permitted near the circumcision site.
“How do you keep these children without their parents’ consent, is that what the tradition says?” Ms Kabika is quoted as saying.
Billy Milimo, secretary of the Livingstone District Education Board, welcomed the move, saying the tradition was harmful to the community.
“You do not know how excited we are. Our teachers will jubilate and dance,” he is quoted by the Daily Mail as saying.
The owner of the camp was initially arrested but released on condition he burn down the site of the camp – mainly made up of rough wooden shelters – which not only bordered the Mosi-Oa-Tunya National Park but was also next to a cemetery.
