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For sale: Virginity certificate
18/07/2003 08:27 - (SA)
Debbie Sauer, Die Burger
East London - Children as young as eight are being subjected to virginity tests in the Eastern Cape.
The shocking revelations were revealed on Thursday about bizarre rituals in the Eastern Cape, where young girls are being inspected with bare hands to test their virginity.
Women and children's organisations say these incidents border on human rights abuses and the right to integrity of one's body.
Lesley-Ann Foster, director of the Masimanyane women's organisation, says: "These rituals are increasing in the Eastern Cape. Cultural and church groups are advertising in newspapers that virgins should have themselves tested to get a certificate. It's not just happening in rural areas, but even in cities."
The organisation expressed its disgust after 500 virgins, boys and girls, attended a ceremony in Lusikisiki in Transkei this week. They all received "virginity" certificates.
Foster said these rituals occurred in some African countries as well as among local Xhosa and Zulu communities. The ritual dates back to Europe in the middle ages. Some tribes even allowed men to watch while the virgins were probed and prodded.
Foster says: "The girls are prodded by old women to check if the hymen was still intact. The women do not wear gloves and move from one girl to another. This is a crisis, because diseases could spread in this manner.
"Some of them say they want to improve morality in the community and stop HIV/Aids once and for all. It's a possibility that they put a damper on a girl's sexuality, but the ego of men, which forms the basis of violence against women and the spread of HIV/Aids, is not addressed.
Foster said the ritual made girls more vulnerable to violence, because the certificate advertises their virginity. Numerous people still believe that HIV/Aids could be cured by having sex with a virgin.
Foster said girls whose hymens had been pierced were considered outcasts.
Saartjie van Wyk, director of the local children and family organisation, says: "We are of the opinion that the ritual is sexual misconduct. These people could tear a girl's hymen. Even doctors are very careful when a virgin has to be examined internally, because of the fear of piercing the hymen."
Masiza Mazizi, spokesperson for the MEC for Culture, Nosimo Balindlela, says all cultures have to be respected.
Doctor Bevan Goqwana, MEC for health, says if the practice forms part of a culture, his department could provide assistance by supplying rubber gloves.
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