Manhood must wait: COVID-19 delays South African circumcision rituals

His uncle had made arrangements for him to travel to the mountains overlooking Port Elizabeth in December for his initiation.

But this year, for the first time in living memory, the ritual has been called off because of the coronavirus. "We decided it would be too risky and that we might lose more boys than we usually do," Msutu said, referring to the fact that dozens of initiates nationwide die from botched circumcisions each year.

"I was a little bit scared because most of the guys who went to the mountain said it was very hard there," Sinoyolo told AFP in the Port Elizabeth township of Kwazakhele, where he grew up. South Africa has the world's fifth-highest number of coronavirus infections, with more than 568,000 confirmed cases and at least 11,000 deaths.

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