Ernest Dhlamini of Mbabane city,
Swaziland, was circumcised in 2006, to enjoy what he calls a clean life.
Dhlamini says he is worried that a
large number of men circumcised under current programs funded by international
organizations, are now abandoning condoms and engaging in unsafe sex.
He says this is a blow to programs
implemented in 2009 by some African nations in an effort to curb the spread of
HIV.
“There are many circumcised men who
think that by being circumcised they can now have unprotected sex at will. They
think that they can no longer contract HIV.”
This promiscuous behaviour is
attracting the attention of some married women, who are now blocking their
partners from the medical procedure.
Zimbabwean senator, Sithembile
Mlotshwa, believes male circumcision is causing a lot of havoc in most southern
African communities as circumcised men forgo the use of condoms.
"You tend to think that if this
man goes through circumcision he is going to be too much. So, you are thinking
I have been married to this man for so many years then why is he preparing his
organ.”
Mlotshwa argues that those abandoning
condoms believe they are too clean to contract HIV.
“After you are circumcised then you
ask why you are protecting yourself.”
Commercial sex workers have taken
advantage of the situation, charging more money for providing services to
circumcised men who don’t care whether the ladies of the night are HIV positive
or not. Two commercial sex workers operating in Zimbabwe’s second largest city,
Bulawayo, say these circumcised men are having sex with them at their own risk.
“These circumcised men say they do not
have any diseases because they were circumcised. In most cases they offer us a
lot of money. One of the circumcised men I had sex with on the first day gave
me $100. I am now HIV positive but there is nothing I can do. This man is
always coming back for more sex even though he does not know my HIV status.”
Officials in South Africa, Zimbabwe
and Swaziland say they are fighting these myths among circumcised men to ensure
they do not contract and spread HIV.
To worsen the situation in these
nations, some people strongly believe that foreskins are being used for
witchcraft purposes.
Some traditional healers confirm that
they have been approached by business people seeking foreskins to boost their
enterprises.
Healer Hlanganani Dungeni operating
from Zimbabwe’s Makokoba high density says foreskins should never be used for
any purpose.
“Some come here looking for foreskins
but we do not give them anything because as members of the Zimbabwe National
Traditional Healers Association we do not use it.”
Dungeni says all foreskins are burnt,
following a traditional circumcision procedure just like what happens in
hospitals where they are incinerated. "This is normally witnessed by those
attending those ceremonies.”
But, Mlotshwa doubts that all
foreskins are burnt or incinerated soon after a circumcision ceremony.
"If some business people know
that they are foreskins of all races in a garbage bin in some hospitals, they
will always try to get all that in order to boost their businesses. Africans
always want to develop their businesses by all means and that includes using
foreskins”
Some HIV/AIDS experts say there is a
need for further research on the effectiveness of male circumcision as some
circumcised men may be spreading HIV at an alarming rate.
In part three of our series on male
circumcision, we will focus on varying views on conducting further research to
strengthen modern male circumcision programs in Zimbabwe, Swaziland and South
Africa.
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