DMRE disrespects Lily Mine families by giving mining licence to same company who contributed to tragedy
Harry Mazibuko
ActionSA Lily Mine Families Spokesperson
The Department of Mineral Resources (DMRE) have yet again failed the families of the Lily Mine victims after firstly failing to attend a prearranged meeting with families last week Thursday, and then on Friday informing families that the Minister of Mineral & Energy, Gwede Mantashe, is proposing to re-issue the mining license to Vantage Goldfield – the same company which presided over the tragedy of on 5 February 2016.
It is deeply upsetting that the DMRE would disrespect the families of Lily Mine by awarding a mining license for the mine to the same company who played a role in the February 2016 tragedy. The Mbombela Magistrates Court already found in mid-October last year that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) should consider criminal prosecutions against individuals, including those individuals at Vantage Goldfields and the DMRE.
It has been more than eight years since the Lily Mine tragedy involving Solomon Nyirenda, Pretty Nkambule and Yvonne Mnisi and were trapped in a sinkhole at the mine, and 3013 days since the tragedy occurred, the three bodies remain trapped underground while those who have been complicit in the tragedy have yet to be prosecuted by the NPA.
The silence of the NPA in proving an update on the prosecution is quite disturbing.
Last Saturday, the Lily Mine families commemorated five years of camping outside the Lily Mine where they have daily called for justice for the three victims after having been failed by the South African government for many years. The families have already given right of attorney to ActionSA president Herman Mashaba to pursue civil and criminal charges against those complicit in the tragedy if the NPA fails to prosecute.
The families reiterate their desire that business rescue plan for the mine, as directed by the Courts, should be implemented which will restart mining operations at the mine to retrieve the bodies of the three victims, and that the families should sufficiently be compensated for the tragedy which occurred. It is simply unacceptable that tragedies such as the Lily Mine tragedy can occur without the South African government taking action to protect the victims and their families.
DMRE disrespects Lily Mine families by giving mining licence to same company who contributed to tragedy
The Department of Mineral Resources (DMRE) have yet again failed the families of the Lily Mine victims after firstly failing to attend a prearranged meeting with families last week Thursday, and then on Friday informing families that the Minister of Mineral & Energy, Gwede Mantashe, is proposing to re-issue the mining license to Vantage Goldfield – the same company which presided over the tragedy of on 5 February 2016.
It is deeply upsetting that the DMRE would disrespect the families of Lily Mine by awarding a mining license for the mine to the same company who played a role in the February 2016 tragedy. The Mbombela Magistrates Court already found in mid-October last year that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) should consider criminal prosecutions against individuals, including those individuals at Vantage Goldfields and the DMRE.
It has been more than eight years since the Lily Mine tragedy involving Solomon Nyirenda, Pretty Nkambule and Yvonne Mnisi and were trapped in a sinkhole at the mine, and 3013 days since the tragedy occurred, the three bodies remain trapped underground while those who have been complicit in the tragedy have yet to be prosecuted by the NPA.
The silence of the NPA in proving an update on the prosecution is quite disturbing.
Last Saturday, the Lily Mine families commemorated five years of camping outside the Lily Mine where they have daily called for justice for the three victims after having been failed by the South African government for many years. The families have already given right of attorney to ActionSA president Herman Mashaba to pursue civil and criminal charges against those complicit in the tragedy if the NPA fails to prosecute.
The families reiterate their desire that business rescue plan for the mine, as directed by the Courts, should be implemented which will restart mining operations at the mine to retrieve the bodies of the three victims, and that the families should sufficiently be compensated for the tragedy which occurred. It is simply unacceptable that tragedies such as the Lily Mine tragedy can occur without the South African government taking action to protect the victims and their families.