Johannesburg - Striking Lonmin workers have
slated as absurd and unnecessary a clampdown on illegal gatherings in and near Marikana.
This followed a hostel raid by police and another confrontation during which teargas and rubber bullets were used at the weekend.
Miners said it was critical for them to get constant feedback from their delegation at the ongoing wage negotiations.
“Workers have asked us to represent them, but now we can’t report back to them and get a mandate on salary negotiations. Police are saying we can’t meet because our gatherings are illegal,” said workers’ spokesman Molefi Phele.
“They first raided the hostel, shot at our people with rubber bullets and arrested others. This is continued humiliation of people who are fighting for their rights and demanding what is rightfully theirs.”
Phele said they were “treated like animals by the police”, adding that preventing workers from meeting was jeopardising the pay negotiations.
“Are we now expected to go to workers’ houses and give feedback to thousands of them? This is pure abuse of power by those who are protecting the interests of the mine and care less about what workers demand and deserve.”
Phele said it was going to be a problem for workers’ representatives to return to the pay negotiations on Monday because the strike committee could not get a mandate from the strikers.
Meanwhile, the Presidency on Sunday defended the government’s use of troops at the weekend, saying the law enforcement measures were not aimed at undermining the civil liberties of strikers and residents.
“The state is only intervening in Marikana to end the violence and intimidation,” Presidency spokesman Mac Maharaj said.
Simultaneously, the Nkaneng informal settlement near Wonderkop, where police shot dead 34 striking miners a month ago, remained tense.
This followed a day of running battles with police and an early morning raid on the Karee hostel.
Pamphlets were later distributed, explaining the Gatherings Act and the law against carrying dangerous weapons in public.
On Sunday, police stopped a march to the Rustenburg police station by Impala, Anglo Platinum and Lonmin workers who wanted to hand over a memorandum complaining of alleged abuse of power and “terrorism” by the police.
The strike has spread to other mines in the Rustenburg platinum belt, with work having stopped at Anglo Platinum, and Impala set to join this week.
Additional reporting by Sue Segar
The Star