The Congress of South African Trade Unions in Mpumalanga will be leading protest march to the Nelspruit High Court whose objective will be to oppose the court judgement which seeks to delay the reopening of the mine.
The federation has planned to oppose delay and press for immediate reopening of the mine due to the following Humanitarian and compelling reasons: –
That it is now 5 years since the tragedy had struck and workers condemned to abject poverty and starvation due to the closure of the mining operations, and the families of the 04 victims remain in agony and unbearable pain because of them being denied suitable and proper closure to bury their loved ones with dignity.
Further that not only has the tragedy affected workers and the families of the four victims, in addition the communities who live and reside around the vicinity of the area of Louisville and Lilly Mine have also been negatively affected because of the closure of the mine and disruption livelihood brought by the disaster.
That the federation has been reliably informed that a credible and competent prospective investor has declared interest to commit to reopen the operations of the mine and that in his business proposal the prospective investor commit to abide by the favourable conditions which will protect the rights of the victims and those adversely affected which will be summarised as follows: –
· That the potential investor commits to the unconditional reinstatement of the previously employed workers with full benefits and reimbursement retrospective.
· That the prospective investor commits to full settlement of the debts owed to the creditors.
· That soon after the reopen of the mining operation the investor will work for the recovery of the trapped container beneath the ground with the remains of the four victims so that the affected families can pay their last respect to their loved ones and find closure
The potential investor commits that the retrieval process will last for 06 months soon after the resumption of the operations.
The federation and its affiliated union the National Union of Mine Workers will spare no effort to ensure that the immediate reopening of Lilly Mine happens without further delay.
The protest action is planned to take place as follows: –
Date : 04 May 2021
Time : 08h30 to 09h00 (Rugby stadium)
10h00 (handing over of memorandum)
Venue: Nelspruit High Court
“Justice delayed is Justice denied”
Issued by
COSATU Mpumalanga
Provincial Secretary
Thabo Mokoena
0737502041