Stilfontein: MACUA wants criminal charges against Mantashe
Mining Affected Community United in Action has reiterated calls for the resignation of Minerals Minister Gwede Mantashe for what it says was his role in the deaths of nearly 80 people at an abandoned North West Mine.
The organisation called a press briefing in Johannesburg on Thursday, following what it says were the Minister's callous remarks during his address at the mining Indaba earlier this week.
READ MORE: Illegal mining has engulfed SA mining industry- Mantashe
Mantashe repeated his assertions that he believed no humanitarian assistance should’ve been given to the suspected illegal miners trapped at the mine.
While the North West health department would not disclose the cause of death for the 78 miners extracted from the mine in January, MACUA’s national administrator Sabelo Mnguni said private pathologists they hired determined that the miners died from starvation and dehydration.
“The pathologists have personally completed 20 autopsies to date that also show clear evidence that starvation and dehydration were the primary causes of death. The findings further confirm miners died from severe immune system suppression, tuberculosis, pneumonia, and bowel infections.”
Mnguni said the deaths were the result of the government’s failure to intervene and were, therefore, preventable.
He accused the government of orchestrating mass murder, disguised as a police operation against illegal mining, by dismantling the systems that community volunteers had put in place to extract miners and send down supplies such as food and water.
Mnguni says they want Mantashe to account.
“We call for the immediate resignation of Gwede Mantashe for his role in this catastrophe. We demand criminal charges, including murder and crimes against humanity, against Mantashe and all government officials responsible.”
The organisation has also demanded an independent commission to probe the operation and the actions that led to the Stilfontein mine deaths.
TACKLING CORRUPTION AND CHANGING THE LAW
MACUA has demanded action against corrupt police and government officials who have a hand in the exploitation of artisanal miners.
Last month, the North West police confirmed the arrest of four police officers accused of aiding the escape of alleged underground ringleader Neo James ‘Tiger’ Tshoaeli.
READ MORE: NW Police probe ‘corrupt cops’ for Stilfontein escape
Police have blamed Tiger for the starvation, assault, and intimidation of scores of miners at the disused shaft 11 of the Buffelsfontein mine.
MACUA’s Response: Mantashe’s Fascist Comments and the Government’s Mass Murder in Stilfontein Must Not Stand Date.
— Mining Affected Communities United in Action (@macua_sa) February 6, 2025
Mining Affected Communities United in Action (MACUA), along with 50 Community-Based Organisations, the Stilfontein Solidarity Committeecondemn in the strongest… pic.twitter.com/idTqX3rvRb
Mnguni said illicit mining and the syndicates that controlled it thrived because the minerals department failed to transform legislation.
“We demand the immediate dismantling of corruption within the police, which allows syndicate bosses to escape justice [service], and an immediate start of the process of amending the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development to bring the laws into alignment with the stark realities of marginalised and affected communities.
“We demand the development of economic alternatives for mining-affected communities, including regulating the artisanal and small-scale mining sector, so that people are not forced to turn to dangerous informal mining to survive.”
They have also accused the government of harassing civil society organisations and activists who provided aid to the Stilfontein miners.
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