Miners say living conditions remain appalling in mining town Marikana

Some mineworkers in Marikana near Rustenburg, North West, say their living conditions remain appalling.  This is as the country commemorates the 12th anniversary of the Marikana massacre on Friday.

During the massacre, police gunned down 34 Lonmin platinum mineworkers at the infamous Koppie in Marikana.

At least 10 people including mineworkers, police officers, and security guards were killed in the days preceding the massacre.

One of the mineworkers who has arrived at the Marikana Koppie says, “In terms of basic services such as water, electricity and sanitation, we are still struggling, and nothing has changed. The situation is still bad. They are now trying to improve our roads.”

Marikana Massacre | 12 years on, communities still living in squalor

Today marks the 12th anniversary of the Marikana massacre in which police gunned down 34 mineworkers at the Lonmin platinum mine near Rustenburg, North West. https://t.co/4u0SH9U1oQ #sabcnews pic.twitter.com/B3SlxpCo4c

— SABC News (@SABCNews) August 16, 2024

AMCU

Trade union – the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) says it will continue to fight for improved wages for mineworkers. The deputy president Manyathi Phuthuma says, “Over the past 12 years we have managed to push as AMCU on average the increase on the basic wage. We have managed to push it at least to a point where there has never been an increase of less than a thousand and that has managed to push them over the past 12 years because if you take that R4 000 together with the 12 years increase of R1000 increase every year, they’re now sitting the minimum for the lowest paid employee is sitting on R16 000 on basic, excluding other benefits.”

Compensation

Meanwhile, the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Thembi Nkadimeng says R352 million has been disbursed in claims related to Marikana.

Briefing the media in Pretoria to outline her department’s priorities and address issues of concern to the public, Nkadimeng says, “This reflects our ongoing effort as the department to ensure that those affected receive the compensation that are due. The beneficiaries include families of the 34 mine workers who lost their lives, as well as the injured and the arrested mineworkers. each case has been assessed individually to ensure that the compensation aligns with the legal framework in the directive that was given by the court.”