Gold One to investigate events leading to ‘hostage situation’
Gold One’s Modder East Operations has vowed to work with law enforcement authorities to investigate events leading to the hostage situation at the mine.
More than 540 workers had been underground since Sunday after they were allegedly prevented from coming back to the surface.
They came out on Wednesday afternoon.
It is understood the tension is due to a long-standing impasse between rival mining unions Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) over organising rights at the mine.
AMCU has since circulated a petition in a bid to end the mine’s closed-shop agreement with the NUM.
Gold One's legal head, Ziyaad Hassam, says the company is pleased that all employees have been safely released.
"While this ordeal has been a traumatic experience, we are relieved to confirm that all employees are now out of harm's way.
“Regrettably, there were a few injuries sustained during the incident. However, we can confirm that all employees, including those who were injured, are currently receiving medical attention from our healthcare professionals.
“We would like to extend our gratitude to all those involved in ensuring the safe release of the hostages," says Hassam.
Hassam says the company will now focus on the investigation into the events leading up to the incident.
"We are committed to addressing any underlying issues to prevent such incidents from occurring in the future and on doing everything possible to secure labour peace at the mine.
“Our focus over the past few days has been solely on securing the safe release of all our employees. We will now turn our attention to taking necessary action against those involved in the conduct of any unlawful and illegal activity.”
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