There is a lengthy road to justice ahead for the families of the 34 mineworkers murdered during the Marikana massacre in North West.
Six years after the tragedy, the investigations remain incomplete and the police officers responsible are yet to be charged for the killings, which occurred during a violent strike at the Lonmin platinum mine.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Luvuyo Mfaku said last year that they had received dockets from the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) regarding the August 16, 2012 shooting.
“In respect to the events of the 16th, which are divided into two scenes, Ipid brought the dockets (to the NPA) towards the end of last year. Prosecutors prioritised the dockets (and concluded) that the investigation was not completed.
“They (prosecutors) are busy compiling detailed directives that they will forward to Ipid to conduct further investigations,” Mfaku added.
He said the Farlam inquiry recommendations had not yet been implemented entirely.
“There are only three investigators from Ipid (on the case). There was the reconstruction of the scene that Judge (Ian) Farlam said experts must be appointed (for). We identified the experts but Ipid doesn’t have the money,” Mfaku said.
Ipid spokesperson Moses Dlamini said: “The investigation with regard to these deaths where 34 people died was completed and the dockets were referred to the NPA on August 1, 2017 for a decision.
“Ipid is still awaiting a decision in this regard,” Dlamini said.
IPID requested funding from National Treasury, Parliament and the Ministry of Police but no funding was received, said Dlamini on the lack of funds to reconstruct the scenes.
Yesterday, Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) President Joseph Mathunjwa told thousands of people gathered near the koppie where the shootings happened that there were high hopes that justice would be served after former national police commissioner Riah Phiyega was found unfit to hold office and was fired.
“We expected a hard-hitting exposé about the trigger pullers and their commanders, but there was none. However, that has come to pass and there are new developments on this terrain,” Mathunjwa said.
He said there were developments regarding the compensation for the families and victims. “This is a welcome development, although there was an arbitrary decision by the state to come up with a figure without consulting the parties.”
Mathunjwa said he was happy to report that most workers in the platinum mining sector were receiving R12500 a month.
“However, we now hear of a national minimum wage of R3500 to be implemented. This figure is a slap in the face of the workers and it is way below Amcu’s threshold,” he said.
Mathunjwa said South Africa needed a living wage.
“The quick implementation of a minimum wage is clearly a way of turning away the attention of workers from the R12500 demand.
“It is an attempt to ensure that they will now have leverage to pay lower wages than those demanded by Amcu,” Mathunjwa added.
Asked about the task ahead regarding investigations into the case, Mfaku said a lot was being done to ensure there was justice.
“Everybody wants the families to find closure.
“We don’t want that every year when we are saying we are commemorating this tragic incident and be the same, (that) there is no accountability,” Mfaku added.
Few families who lost breadwinners in the days leading up to the Marikana massacre were a step closer to finding closer.
Mfaku said a criminal case against 10 police officers, including former North West provincial deputy police commissioner Major-General William Mpembe, was set for pre-trial in the North West High Court next month.
Mpembe, 55, and the other police officers are facing 15 counts, including murder, attempted murder and defeating the ends of justice, relating to the incidents before the mass murder of the mineworkers on August 16, 2012.
Turn to Page 2