Traditional healers adapt to modernity

 By Ayabonga Nkalitshana

‘Unity is strength’- is the slogan used by the Traditional Healers Association, which held a workshop at the University of Fort Hare, to educate and create awareness about some of the challenges being faced by traditional healers in the Eastern Cape and South Africa at large. “Our slogan is important because it says strength is unity, we conquer as one, meaning unity gives us strength as traditional healers,” said Mrs. Celiwe Dicalmo, who was part of the workshop and a traditional healer.

The workshop was to educate traditional healers about what is expected of them by society and what conduct or actions are not acknowledged by society and other traditional healers. The organisation’s aim is to ensure that traditional healers are familiar with society and get right of entry to areas, in which they are restricted to enter and get traditional medicine, areas like forests which require consent to gain access. It was also to help traditional healers to be registered and be able to enter hospitals and heal people with traditional medicine.

Abongile Sam, who is one of the traditional healers, said, “The workshop and organisation helps us learn to value and treat our patients properly, and also accepted ways of behaving as traditional healers”. The organisation encourages traditional healers together with initiators and other health practitioners to work together and support each other because the main purpose is to heal people, and their health is more important than money. One of the many things which were predestined in the workshop is the killing of people in the name of healing with human organs.

 The event was organised with the help of Mrs Sandlana, who is part of Psychology Department at Fort Hare University, together with the head office of Traditional Healers Association (THA), “This was as a consequence of a study done by students, which showed that many traditional healers in the Eastern Cape are not registered which prevents them from practising in hospitals and provide quality health care services,” said Sandlana.