An initiate traditional healer has opened up about her trauma after her trainer appeared in court on Tuesday on a charge of assault — an incident which was captured in a disturbing video.
The unsettling footage shows the woman allegedly being repeatedly beaten, her upper body stripped naked, and doused with alcohol.
The KwaNobuhle woman alleged that she was hit and abused during two successive graduation ceremonies which should have been celebrations.
Videos of the incidents — showing how ithwasa (initiate) Khanyisa George was repeatedly beaten about the shoulders, stripped half naked, doused with alcohol and hit in the face, all in front of her new husband — continue to do the rounds on social media.
George, 42, subsequently lost her unborn baby because, she said, painful flashbacks and tension over the upcoming trial had taken an intolerable toll on her body.
Cultural rights organisation CRL has, meanwhile, slammed the alleged incidents as a clear case of assault and pointed to the outcry after the videos were initially released.
Accused igqirha (traditional healer) Phumeza Makeleni appeared in the KwaNobuhle Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, where the case was postponed to September for trial.
Her lawyer, Phumzi Ncayi, said his client would plead not guilty.
George said she began her journey to become a traditional healer after dreaming about Makeleni.
She said she went to visit her to discuss what she had dreamt, and was thereafter accepted into Makeleni’s home as an initiate.
“I did not choose to be a traditional healer. The calling chose me.
“The ancestors gave me [Makeleni] to be my trainer,” she said after the brief court proceedings.
George said she had undergone training for a year and three months.
“It was all OK until the end when there were two ceremonies at my home — in November and December 2024 — over the space of eight days.
“I still feel traumatised by what happened there, by the way she [allegedly] hit me.
“What made it worse was she disrespected my husband, who I had invited to be there.
“At one point he said they must stop as he could not accept them [allegedly] hitting me any more.
“Makeleni responded by warning him she would come and hit him.
“And then Makeleni’s sister told my husband to get out, and all my family members left because they lacked knowledge and authority on this issue of training to be a traditional healer.
“Makeleni knew that and took advantage of it,” she claimed.
The disturbing video of the penultimate ceremony shows George on her haunches, sobbing and gasping for breath, her face smeared with an initiate’s white mask.
She is seemingly being manhandled by Makeleni and another woman, believed to be the traditional healer’s sister, while a small seated audience looks on.
Makeleni then appears to grab George’s braids with one hand, hauls her head back and whacks her repeatedly on her shoulders with the flat of her other hand, as her initiate sobs.
The traditional healer can be seen warning a member of the audience who apparently remonstrated with her.
After this, with George forced onto all fours, Makeleni gestures to another female assistant, who pulls off George’s blouse, exposing her breasts.
Then, while the sister pours what looks like brandy over George’s head, Makeleni raises both hands and allegedly slaps her hard on the back several times.
In a video of the final ceremony in December, Makeleni and another woman are seen roughly rubbing off George’s white face mask.
This process ends with the traditional healer allegedly giving her initiate a roundhouse slap in the face.
George said though she was now a qualified traditional healer, she did not know how she would be able to practice after what had happened to her.
“How will I be able to take an initiate for training when I am carrying this trauma?”
She said she was also concerned that the incident would harm her reputation if she sought any other job in the future, because it had been spread far and wide on social media.
“People do not forget. This cloud will always follow me. My dignity and the dignity of my family, my home and my ancestors will always be dragged through the mud.”
She said she had been forced to consult a psychologist and still suffered headaches, all linked to the alleged assault.
Ncayi confirmed that he was representing Makeleni and said they would return to court on September 18.
“We are intending to plead not guilty but we will not confirm further details on the merits of the case at this stage,” he said.
CRL Rights Commission (Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities) Eastern Cape commissioner Donna Makoboka said the matter was key.
“This is not culture. This is assault. You just need to look at the outcry from people after the videos went viral.
“This is a person in a position of power who is violating the rights of someone under her authority.
“It happened in the midst of everyone. It is a grave indignity to not only her but her family as well.
“Furthermore, by [allegedly] assaulting George, Makeleni is pulling a traditional practice into murky waters, so much so that some people may question its integrity.”
Makoboka said this was in itself negative as people were allowed to practice any traditional practices so long as they did not conflict with human rights.
“Beyond the outcome of this particular case, guidelines are clearly needed to regulate what is acceptable and what is not when it comes to the training of traditional healers,” she said.
The Herald
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