Zim Now Writer
The 39 students arrested last Friday while attending a Vuzu party at a house in Khumalo suburb in Bulawayo were released into the custody of their parents and guardians.
“The students were released to the custody of their parents. As the police we appreciate members of the public for giving us information which was an eye opener that vuzu parties have started in Bulawayo. We urge parents to keep an eye on their children as we are approaching the festive season and we anticipate more of such parties,” said acting Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebel
The learners were drawn from Milton High School. Eveline High School, Herentals College Hamilton High School and Zimbabwe College, according to police.
The teens are aged between 15 and 19 Bulawayo with police saying they found empty bottles of whiskey, cigarette stubs, used and unused condoms at the scene, adding that parents must keep an eye on their children ahead of the festive season.
Vuzu parties are common in Bulawayo. The indoor secretive gatherings are mostly held by teenagers without adult supervision. Beer drinking, drugs and sex are part of the scene.
Vuzu parties have been singled as drivers of STI infections, unwanted pregnancies and substance abuse among young people.
A study titled “Exploring the practice of Vuzus among young people in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe” conducted by Aids Healthcare Foundation (AFH), in partnership with Grassroot Soccer and released in 2021, revealed that vuzu parties are a complex ecosystem with room for abuse, especially for females.
122 young people aged between 15 and 24 from different areas in Bulawayo took part in the study. The 77 females and 45 were males revealed that some are drawn to vuzu parties for social media capital.
They also revealed that older men often sponsor the parties and or offer venues in order to capitalise on the young female bodies on offer.
https://zimbabwenow.co.zw/articles/1229/bulawayo-police-arrest-39-school-kids-at-vuzu-party
At a vuzu party engagement forum organised by the Junior Chamber International (JCI), Bulawayo Progressive Residents’ Association (BPRA) and the Better Men Foundation, a young man revealed that some vuzu parties can get extreme with sex races with prizes for the most sexually promiscuous youths.
“It’s a race and you have to prove a point. Two people, a boy and a girl who manage to sleep with at least 10 partners during that night are given the royal crown,” said the young man.
Participants in the 2021 study said that during sex marathons, condoms are not used.
Parental supervision and oversight have been singled as the most important factors in reducing vuzu party prevalence and attendance.
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