Friday marks the 7th anniversary of the 2012 Marikana tragedy. Thirty four mine workers were shot and killed by police during a protracted wage strike on August 16 at the then Lonmin operations, now owned by Sibanye-Stillwater.
As thousands of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) members commemorate the tragedy, others say those who were killed did not die in vain.
Some say the wage demands of R12 500 then, have to a larger extent addressed some of their challenges.
President of the dominant union, AMCU, Joseph Mathunjwa says, “One can say without any hesitation that since AMCU came in the mining industry, in particular in platinum, you can see the lives of the member or the workers in general has changed.”
“These workers are able to build their own houses, if you go to different corners of the country you could see the progress and the change of lifestyle.”
Meanwhile, a new application has been launched to have the findings of the Farlam Commission into the Marikana Massacre overturned.
Lawyers for the families of slain workers argue that the commission exonerated politicians, ministers as well as union leaders and Lonmin executives who may have played a role in the deployment and shooting of workers by police in August 2012.
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