Police in Chikwawa have arrested 6 traditional circumcisers after they assaulted one of their former initiates, accusing him of revealing secrets of an initiation camp.
The six, four of them underaged boys, were arrested in the early hours of Tuesday within their camp at Mikadzu Village in the area of Traditional Authority Maseya in the district.
Chikwawa Police public relations officer, Foster Benjamin said police raided the camp and netted Austin Robert, 32, Frank Mulongoti, 18 and four other teenaged circumcisers.
“The arrest follows an attack on a 12-year-old boy barely a day after he graduated from simba( camp). The boy graduated on 25 August.
“He is alleged to have summoned his friends, particularly those who were not initiated, and narrated all that the initiation camp held and taught, “said Benjamin.
This, however, could not go down well with his former ‘teachers’ who immediately plotted to chastise him.
On Sunday, the angry initiators pounced on the boy and dragged him back into their camp.
They allegedly whipped and inflicted serious burns on his left leg, arm and the back.
The boy is still being treated at Chikwawa District Hospital.
A manhunt has since led to the arrest of the suspects in the wee hours of Tuesday.
The suspects, who hail from Mikadzu and Biyasoni Villages under Traditional Authority Maseya in Chikwawa District, are expected to appear in court within a week over charges causing grievous harm.
