Central SA
‘Government has neglected Marikana widows,’ says activist─── LUCKY NKUYANE 10:23 Tue, 16 Aug 2022
A Marikana activist has criticised the South African Government for the massacre where 34 miners were shot and killed by the police in the North West on 16 August 2012.
The activist, Napoleon Webster, tells OFM News that the 10th Marikana commemoration day is painful. He accuses the government of neglecting the widows of the Marikana Massacre. Over a hundred people are expected to gather at the hill where the miners gathered before the killings whilst protesting for a R12,500 minimum wage at Lonmin. Former President Jacob Zuma set up a commission, chaired by a retired Judge of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), Ian Farlam, who exonerated both the deputy president, Cyril Ramaphosa, the mining company Lonmin, and the former police commissioner, Riah Phiyega, for their alleged involvement in the massacre. Webster says the government has shifted the attention from the situation that took place in Marikana.
“It’s very painful that our cry is not loud enough to be heard by the president. It is painful that the president is avoiding even coming to Marikana and apologise. The government has neglected us and has allowed mining companies to suffocate us whilst they are busy looting our minerals without benefiting us,” Webster adds.
In total, 44 people died in what is known as the Marikana Massacre. Between 12 and 14 August, approximately nine people were killed in the area around Marikana. There are conflicting reports on who killed whom during these dates. However, at least four miners, two police officers, and two security guards seem to have been killed during this time.
OFM News previously reported that a political analyst from the University of the Free State (UFS) says the government could have played a leading role in the mediation of the 2012 Marikana Massacre.
ALSO READ: The government failed to lead mediation in Marikana tragedy - analyst
Sethulego Matebesi said the government may have delayed dealing with the case and as such allowed political parties and civil movements to lead the process. This, as families of the victims has now announced that they are suing the government for a staggering R1 billion following years of debate about who needs to take responsibility for the murders.
