Marikana Massacre: Over R70m Paid to Families but Legal Dispute Continues

• In total, over R70m has been paid to the families of the victims of the Marikana mine tragedy which occurred nearly a decade ago
• There is an ongoing dispute with the families' lawyers, who are demanding more compensation for the horrific incident
• After an offer by the DJCD was made and rejected so the matter of the compensation has been referred to the courts again

Over R70 million has been paid to 35 families of those killed in the Marikana mine tragedy of 2012. However, there is still a dispute with lawyers who are representing the families of the 36 miners killed during the incident.

The dispute revolves around the number that should be paid in constitutional damages by the State. The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development’s Solicitor-General Fhedzisani Pandelani stated that most of the cases have been settled and payments made.

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Pandelani added that Government had paid R3.9m in a loss of support claim through the Wits Law Clinic, which represented one family.

According to TimesLIVE, Pandelani revealed that 253 unlawful arrest and detention claims have been finalised by the State. This was lodged by Nkome Attorneys and cost around R97.6 million. There is still a dispute with the Socio-Economic Rights Institute (Seri) which is currently claiming R1.5m for damages in a Constitutional manner for each family impacted.

Claimants reject the offer and put through a counter-offer

Pandelani stated that they were willing to pay all R500 000 per family represented by Seri but this offer was rejected. A counter-offer was put through of R1.5m per claimant. Pandelani explained that the R500k they offered is against the background of the State, considering almost R70m was already paid.

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SABC News reported that the matter was referred back to the courts since the R500 000 offer was rejected.

Associations call for justice for families of victims and survivors of the Marikana tragedy

Previously, Briefly News reported that two letters were written by the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) to President Cyril Ramaphosa. The letters revolve around requesting the president to speed up the process to compensate the families and victims of the Marikana tragedy.

Reports say that no reply has yet been received. The news comes as the ninth anniversary of the Marikana tragedy is marked. A total of 34 miners were killed in a hail of bullets fired by the South African Police Service, a number of other mine workers were injured.

Amnesty International South Africa (AISA) revealed that it believes it is unacceptable that there has been no compensation or any form of redress that had been put forward by Government over the Marikana tragedy.

Source: Briefly News