NORTHAM – Efforts to bring peace and stability at Northam Platinum operation in Limpopo will continue next week, Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane said on Thursday.

“We will continue to engage with all stakeholders to resolves issues affecting you as workers. We will be back on Tuesday. The director general of the department will be here to receive reports from the police on how far have they gone in investigating the killing of workers. The director general will also receive reports on other issues you have raised,” he said.

He was speaking at a mass meeting at Northam to appeal for calm following clashes between members of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu).

“We do not need war in peace time. Let peace reign. Stop the killing outside the mine premises. Let us not encourage black on black violence,” he said, pointing out that all the deaths occurred outside the mine premises.

“For over a year we have not recorded any fatality at this mine, all these deaths happened outside. We are also making an appeal to stakeholders not to engage in any conduct that would undermine the Framework Agreement for a Sustainable Mining Industry, particularly in ensuring the rule of law, peace and stability,” Zwane said.

Two workers have been killed and two cars torched.

NUM member Mthetheleli Somaxhama, 45, was gunned down on Sunday in Northam. He was a machine operator at Northam Platinum’s Zondereinde mine, where he was employed for the past 13 years.

He was shot three times at a hiking spot in Northam town about 20km from the mine.

His death triggered the violence leading to the death of 52-year old Thembinkosi Mhlabeni. He was stabbed to death when members of the two unions clashed near the R510 road between Northam and Thabazimbi on Monday morning.

Mhlabeni was a machine operator at Zondereinde Mine, where he was employed for the past 12 years.

He was believed to be an Amcu member but, Northam Platinum said according to records he was an NUM member.

The clashes are believed to have been triggered by turf war between the two unions.

The NUM is a majority union with 80 percent of the workforce while Amcu has 6,7 percent at Northam Platinum.

Amcu toppled NUM as a dominant union in the platinum mines in 2012, following wildcat strikes at Lonmin operations in Marikana, Impala Platinum operations in Rustenburg and Anglo American Platinum operations in Rustenburg, North West and Northam in Limpopo.

Zwane told the crowd that he was confident there would be a break through in all cases relating to the killing of mineworkers in the area.

The NUM said six of their members were shot and five died in the second half of 2015, and Somaxhama was the sixth member to be killed.

Zwane said the police would report on the progress of their investigation into these cases next week.

He said workers would return to work in an orderly manner in a stable and safe environment.

At a mass meeting on Wednesday, workers resolved not to return to work until all those implicated on the death of the six workers have been arrested.

Operations at the mines were halted from Sunday night when workers refused to report for work following Somaxhama’s death.

Northam Platinum CEO Paul Dunne said they appreciated Zwane’s efforts in attempting to resolve the tensions at the Zondereinde.

“We will continue to provide support to the authorities in tracking down the perpetrators and bringing them to justice. We will also continue our plans to support the municipality as we have done over the years with infrastructure, expertise and developments, as we strive to improve the living conditions of our employees,” he said.

“We recognized that tensions were high immediately following these tragic deaths, and for this reason temporarily suspended underground operations. But, for all of us, it is time to go back to work. If we do not, we run the risk of undermining the viability of operations here at Northam”.

He appealed to all employees and unions to continue to engage and allow the police to do their work.

“Let us help them where we can to bring the criminals that threaten the safety of our employees and their families to book so that justice may prevail. And let us not allow these tragic incidents to bring strife and violence onto our mine. We look forward to a speedy return to work”.

Amcu president Joseph Mathunjwa called upon his members to remain calm.

“We want to make it clear that Amcu is not responsible for the incident, nor do we have any knowledge of what happened. The suspicion by the National Union of Mineworkers is misplaced and has resulted in a chain of events that have put our workers at the receiving end of violence and ill-treatment at their place of work,” he said in a statement.