THE case of a King William’s Town man who has taken his father to court for abducting and subjecting him to circumcision against his will was postponed in the Bhisho Equality Court yesterday.

The case – brought to court by the Justice Alliance of South Africa (Jasa) and Bonani Yamani, 21, against his father Lindile Yamani and Eastern Cape Contralesa chief Mwelo Nonkonyana – was postponed to October 12.

According to John Smyths, who was to represent Bonani yesterday, the reason for the postponement was that Bonani’s father had just hired an advocate who needed to familiarise himself with the case.

In a statement before the case, Smyths said Bonani Yamani was subjected to violent traditional circumcision on March 3, 2007, after he had been circumcised at East London’s Frere Hospital three months earlier.

Jasa filed suit in the High Court Division of the Equality Court in Bhisho in January last year. Bonani had made it clear that his conscience and religious beliefs did not allow him to undergo the traditional Xhosa rite.

Bonani, who is a second-year medical micro biology student at Free State University, claimed he had been abducted from his home at 4am, tied up, taken to the bush, and subjected to further circumcision by some 10 community leaders.

“He was forced to eat skin incised from his penis. This was a serious criminal assault and a gross breach of Bonani’s dignity,” Smyths said.