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August 16 should be declared a national commemorative day: Maimane

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One SA leader, Mmusi Maimane, says August 16 should be declared a national commemorative day.

The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) is commemorating the eighth anniversary of the Marikana tragedy in Midrand, Johannesburg, on Sunday.

It is the first time that the commemoration is being hosted outside the North West, where 34 mineworkers were shot dead by heavily armed police.

Forty-four people, including security guards and police officers, were killed in August 2012 during a strike where Lonmin mineworkers were demanding a R12 500 basic monthly salary.

Delivering a virtual address to the event, Maimane says: “I stand with you fellow South Africans and I say we must never tire of requesting that today be declared a commemorative day nationally. I stand with you to say today compensation must be met for the widows and that call must never change. I stand when you when we say we continue to make the call that mining towns should never be the car of apartheid where fathers are asked to leave mothers at home, but they should have housing accommodation that ensures families are restored in our country.”

Below is the live stream of 8th Marikana Massacre commemoration:

The United Democratic Movement (UDM) President, Bantu Holomisa, says the Marikana massacre must remind South Africans how a tense situation can spiral out of control.

In the video below, Holomisa says the massacre also shows what happens when the powerful suppress the weak:

In the video below, Bishop Jo Seoka, who was a constant figure in the action to hold authorities to account, recounts the day:

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