Right to protest prevails in Marikana – the march to Tharisa mine is going ahead!
Marikana Youth Development together with R2K Gauteng will march to Tharisa mine on Friday 25 May 2018 to issue a memorandum with a range of demands as listed below.
This march comes after a long battle with the Rustenburg police who have consistently and illegally prevented the community of Marikana from exercising their right to protest.
It was only after the intervention of Right2Know and the threat of legal action that the police finally decided to adhere to the law and process the notification for a march. The Marikana Youth Development Forum aims to have a sizeable march involving the entire community around Marikana as Tharisa mine had been undermining and denying the community access to information.
Below are the demands of the community:
• We demand the removal of William Mpembe as head of security of the mine. Mpembe is former North West Deputy Police Commissioner who is now facing murder charges in relation to the Marikana massacre.
• We demand the removal of Thabang Maluke as an executive of the mine, for community development.
• We demand an urgent audit of the delivery of Tharisa’s Social and Labour Plan (SLP).
• We demand an ABET School and skills development centre for the community from the mine, and provision of speed humps on Marikana main road.
• We demand Tharisa to be transparent on job allocation and stop only engaging with ward councillors on the issues of jobs, skills, trust and community projects. Tharisa should stop employing people from outside the communities surrounding Marikana without consulting with community. Furthermore, we demand a database of employment at the mine between 2016 and 2018.
• We demand Tharisa withdraws the court interdict against the four comrades of Marikana Youth Development which is now being used to stop us from our right to protest.
The march will start at Marikana Chopi open field next to Shoprite complex at 9am. We will hand over the memorundum at Tharisa mine at 13:00.
Ongazi Makazi! We have a Right2Protest!
PLANNED PROTEST DETAILS:
Date: 25 May 2018
Time: 9AM – 13PM
Venue: Tharisa Mine, Rustenburg
NOTE: R2K urges communities to use the Right2Protest Hotline (0800 212 111) which offers free legal advice for protesters who are having their rights undermined. The number is operational during business hours. Follow the Right2Protest Project on Facebook and Twitter @ProtestZA.
