Calls for justice echo as Marikana Massacre commemorated, 13 years on

MEMORIAL SITE PROPOSED

- MAYIBONGWE MAGHINA

THE Marikana Massacre was commemorated yesterday amid demands for justice for the 34 fallen mineworkers killed during a strike at Lonmin Mine in Marikana, North West, 13 years ago.

The day was marked by calls to declare August 16 as Marikana Memorial Day, and Allied Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) has announced plans to make the koppie, the site where the killings took place, into a memorial site.

Before the massacre, 10 people, including security guards and police officers, were killed when workers embarked on a wildcat strike at Lonmin Mine, now Sibanye-Stillwater.

The Socio-Economic Rights Institute (SERI) said there have been no prosecutions for the deaths that occurred during the Marikana incident, and no one has been held to account for the physical and psychological injuries suffered by many individuals.

“The failure to hold accountable those responsible for these deaths is a betrayal of the promise of justice. Not only does it dishonour the families of the deceased, but erodes trust in our justice system,” SERI executive director Nomzamo Zondo said.

The South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) expressed the lingering wounds left by the massacre.

Saftu General Secretary Zwelinzima Vavi described the events of 13 years ago as not merely tragic, but as a premeditated act of state violence designed to protect economic interests at the expense of workers, whose demand for a living wage remained a symbol of dignity and resistance.