Current Community Struggles – Desecrating Graves and Drilling in Villages

In this article Dor and Dolo gives an overview of the community struggles against the mine companies expansion into local villages in Limpopo, desecrating graves and relocating schools.

Jubilee Mokopane held mass meetings on Sunday, 28 September, in the Sekuruwe and Sekiming communities, affected by the Anglo Platinum and Lonmin platinum mining companies. The communities, with support from many other communities in the Mapela Traditional Authority area, agreed to hold Anglo Platinum to account for the desecration of graves and to stop Lonmin from invading villages with their drilling machines.

Sekuruwe

Sekuruwe is affected by the expansion of Anglo Platinum’s Potgietersrus Platinum Limited (PPL) operations. Anglo is taking the community’s ploughing and grazing fields and desecrating their graves to make way for a massive extension of its slimes dams.

The meeting at Sekuruwe was attended by more than 500 people, with delegations from other villages in the Mapela area affected by the mines. These included the communities of GaMolekane, Ga Pila, Sterkwater, Mashahleng, Matlou, Lelaka, Chokoe, Hans and Sekiming.

Empty graves

The main issue discussed was the damage done by Anglo and their undertakers in relocating the community graves to the other side of the village. Graves were dug up haphazardly, bones were just left lying at the original graveyard and community members suspect that coffins buried at the new site may be full of sand rather than human remains. Amanda Esterhuysen of the South African Heritage Resource Agency (SAHRA) informed the meeting that their report on the relocation has been forwarded to the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC).

With community support, SAHRA is taking the necessary steps to get the legal authority to exhume the graves so as to match the contents of the graves with the bones left at the old site. The community wants Anglo to cover the costs of restoring the human remains to their appropriate graves.

The attempt by Anglo and its so-called community Section 21 company to reach agreement to lease the community’s land without consultation was also discussed. It was agreed that various avenues will be explored to call on the Minister of Land Affairs not to sign the agreement, including putting pressure on politicians in the run up to the elections.

Sekiming

Sekiming is one of the 13 villages affected by Lonmin and Anglo Platinum. Lonmin has introduced drilling machines into the village to explore for platinum. Anglo is responsible for blasting activity, resulting in cracking of houses and air pollution, and is also attempting to relocate the secondary school, Seritarita, serving Sekiming and adjacent villages.

The meeting at Sekiming was attended by about 300 people. The delegates from other villages that attended the meeting in Sekuruwe in the morning went to the Sekiming meeting in the afternoon.

The meeting heard of the community’s success in stopping the drilling machines from operating on 12 September and of the support the community received from other communities, notably Ga Chaba. The machines have not operated since. Lawyer, Richard Spoor, noted that the company was breaking the law in drilling without the community’s consent and that the community was within its rights to insist that the company does not drill in violation of the community’s wishes.

It was agreed that the Sekiming community will work with Ga Chaba, Hans and the other communities affected by Lonmin to stop drilling activities in all the villages until such time as Lonmin agrees to meet with the affected communities. It was also agreed to work with the School Governing Body and the communities that are served by Seritarita to oppose the relocation of the school.

At both meetings, people criticised the illegitimacy of the Section 21 companies, the corruption between the mines and these companies, and the use of informers and divide and rule tactics to undermine affected communities.

Through its Mokopane Co-ordinator, Phillipos Dolo, Jubilee South Africa stressed the importance of building solidarity amongst the 13 villages affected by Lonmin, amongst affected communities throughout the region and at the national and international levels. William Mabapa, National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) Limpopo Provincial Secretary, shared the recent decision at their provincial conference to step up support for community struggles against the mining companies.

Hans community

On Sunday 5 Oct, the community of Hans, one of 13 villages in the Mapela Tribal Authority in the Mokopane region affected by the intention of Lonmin to mine for platinum, told the company that they were not welcome. Villages told Lonmin to leave their land, to pack up and go.

This is the latest in a series of activities over the last month in which communities have been reasserting their rights to their land over Lonmin. On 12 September, Jubilee Sekiming started a campaign of peaceful protest against the array of drilling machines prospecting for platinum on behalf of Lonmin on their land and at the entrance to their village. They were joined by Jubilee youth activists from the nearby village of Ga Chaba in maintaining the protest for over two weeks. In an unusual turn of events for the platinum mining areas, the police did not automatically jump to the defence of the company. There was no violence, there were no arrests, and indeed the police brought representatives from the Mapela Tribal Authority to the protesters in an attempt to resolve the matter.

As of the end of September, Lonmin started to pack up their machines. According to Phillipos Dolo, “The protest was peaceful. There was no violence. The people were not arrested. The drilling machines are leaving.” This renewed confidence in asserting their rights has already spread to other villages. The community of Mashahleng is insisting that a company prospecting for magnetic stone on its land also leaves with immediate effect.

Anglo platinum

These developments are also finding their reflection in escalating opposition to the most destructive of the companies in the Mapela area, Anglo Platinum. This company, part of the Anglo American group which made its initial fortune on the basis of migrant labour, the pass laws and forced removals, is intent on using similar aggressive measures in the expansion of its operations, and to date has had the backing of the police, Mapela Tribal Authority and its own creations, the village Section 21 companies, in its efforts.

Anglo was exposed on SABC radio in a two-hour debate between its spokesperson, its undertakers, the South African Heritage Resource Agency and the Sekuruwe community for the desecration of community graves. The community drew inspiration from the public vindication of their rights as regards their graves and exposure of the way in which the company violated these rights. Yet the authorities are still charging 47 members of the community for defending their graves.

School Relocated

Anglo Platinum is also forging ahead with the forced relocation of the Seritarita Secondary School to allegedly vacate the premises for an Anglo Platinum training centre. This will leave communities including Sekiming and Ga Chaba without a secondary school. Again, communities are rallying to its defence through, amongst others, a petition to stop the relocation.

However, Anglo Platinum has forged ahead with the forced relocation of the Seritarita Secondary School to allegedly vacate the premises for an Anglo Platinum training centre. This will leave communities including Sekiming and Ga Chaba without a secondary school. Again, communities are rallying to its defence through, amongst others, a petition to stop the relocation.