Another initiate is feared dead after his friend escaped from an initiation school in Heidelberg on the East Rand on Sunday to seek help, police said.
Representative Annaline Prinsloo said a 17-year-old youth escaped from the school because he discovered that the boy sleeping next to him was dead.
The boy claimed he had been kidnapped and assaulted and held at the school against his will.
The police and emergency services officials visited the school to investigate and found 16 initiates. Two of them had septic circumcision wounds while several others had pneumonia.
The escapee told the police that there had been 18 boys at the school, including himself. Prinsloo said the police believed that one boy was missing and the dog unit would search the area on Monday.
The children were treated by emergency services on the scene but the teachers denied the police permission to remove the initiates. The children also refused to leave.
Prinsloo said health authorities had been informed and the school would be closed on Monday and the children would be sent home.
The 17-year-old was taken to Heidelberg hospital and treated for light injuries before being sent home to Vereeniging.
Meanwhile, a sixth person was arrested in connection with last week’s deaths at two initiation schools in Ratanda in the Heidelberg area. Prinsloo said a sangoma was arrested on Friday while he was trying to flee to Newcastle in KwaZulu-Natal.
He will appear in the Heidelberg Magistrate’s Court on Monday while five teachers, arrested last week, will appear in court for the second time on Wednesday.
The five teachers were charged with murder and assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm.
The two initiation schools were closed down after five boys died of double pneumonia, multiple injuries sustained due to a blunt instrument and septic circumcisions.
More than 50 boys were also admitted to hospital.
By Sunday, most of the boys had been released. Two initiates remained at the Heidelberg Hospital. One initiate was discharged from the Kopanong hospital over the weekend and two remained there. Three initiates were still at Pholosong hospital by the weekend.
All of them are expected to be discharged in the next couple of days.
In the Limpopo province, eight initiation schools were closed on Friday and a school owner was arrested in connection with the death of a boy.
More than 70 children were also hospitalised, most of whom were treated for shock and septic genital wounds. – Sapa