Mildred Oliphant demands mining ministry must act on union killings - Business Day

Amcu president Joseph Mathunjwa has said war had been declared on his union.

Those behind the killings sought to destabilise his organisation, he claimed.

However, many reports have also implicated Amcu officials, saying the war on the platinum belt was over leadership squabbles which had flared up due to tribal discrimination in the union’s upper echelons.

Last week, Lonmin CEO Ben Magara said the company was concerned about the spate of deaths after the assassination of Tholakele Dlunga, who was the sixth mine worker killed in just three months.

He said: "Lonmin is deeply concerned by the recent fatal shootings across the platinum belt. The company is aware of at least six deaths and three injuries across the region."

Magara also expressed concern over how the killings could affect Lonmin’s "sound rapport" with unions and employees, fearing it could undo its efforts to sustain stability.

Oliphant said she had warned unions about the vulnerable position in which the conflict could place them and workers.

Although she did not directly attribute the killings to union rivalry, Oliphant’s statements suggested that was her analysis of the cause of the conflict.

The National Union of Mineworkers, a bitter rival to Amcu, has distanced itself from the killings, saying they were likely to be intra-union violence as it had not organised in the North West platinum belt since it was unseated by Amcu in 2012.

"I always appeal to the unions to say you can’t be in competition as if you are not fighting for the same objective," Oliphant said.

mahlakoanat@businesslive.co.za