JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – South Africa’s Department of Minerals and Energy (DME) on Monday convened a meeting to discuss the plight of the workers from the Marikane community, who was recently evicted by the owner of the farm Spruitfontein, near Rustenburg.

DME spokesperson Solomon Phetla stated that the farm owner handed the workers a court sanctioned eviction notice on March 21, stating that he planned to develop the property for mining.

However, Phetla stated that the eviction notice had not gone through the regular channels, and had not been approved by the Department of Land Affairs or the local municipality. He added that the farm owner had also not lodged a mining or exploration application with the DME.

At Monday’s meeting, stakeholders from the DME, the Department of Land Affairs, the Department of Labour, the Human Rights Commission, the local municipality, and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) met to discuss the plight of the 33 families affected families, who were now living at the Marikana Clinic.

Phetla stated that the Department of Land Affairs has now taken a decision to appoint lawyers in an effort to resist the court order, and stakeholders would be meeting with the office of the Premier of the North West to resolve the matter.

The meeting with the office of the North West Premier was likely to take place within the next week.

To subscribe to Mining Weekly's print magazine email subscriptions@creamermedia.co.za or buy now.