A spiritual healer from Makhanda who used unconventional methods to treat a child has been sentenced in the regional court on a charge of culpable homicide.
Spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), Luxolo Tyali, says 57-year-old Ntombentsha Limbo was sentenced this week to nine years imprisonment, suspended for five years.
He says that in October 2023, the 10-year-old boy was taken to the healer by his father, who had concerns about his son's health and performance at school.
Tyali says upon arrival, Limbo suggested they do a treatment first before a consultation, and the father agreed.
He says the healer's first point of call was to bring 5 litres of salt water to each the father and his son, in a bucket, to induce vomiting.
The father managed to finish his water, but the child left about 750 ml remaining before telling his father that he was not feeling well and wanted to sleep because he had a headache.
The boy then vomited and soiled himself, but was allowed to rest while Limbo, the traditional healer, continued seeing other patients.
On her return, she suggested they give the boy an enema, saying she had seen a vision that something was in his stomach.
The father agreed, and Limbo prepared another 5 litres of water. The boy was woken up and given an enema.
Tyali says the child got worse and begged his father for the healer to stop as he felt he was dying.
He says Limbo, however, convinced the father that his son would be fine, as he had evil spirits who did not want the treatment.
Then, another 5 litres of water were prepared, this time with a sunlight soap bar, and another enema was performed.
Some of the soapy water was also poured into his eyes, ears, nostrils, and mouth to remove the so-called evil spirits.
The NPA's Tyali says that by now, the father noticed that his son's breathing was not normal, and he was foaming at the mouth.
He says it was then that Limbo's mentor suggested they call an ambulance.
Despite efforts to treat the boy, he was declared dead at the hospital.
Tyali says during the trial, a medical examiner said if the child had sought medical attention after consuming the first 5 litres of water, his life could have been saved, because what essentially happened was that his organs, including his brain, had failed.
The doctor said even if an adult had consumed 15 litres of water, he too would have died.
The healer never denied any of her unconventional treatments in court, simply stating that most children acted out as they did not want to be treated.
She denied causing his death.
