Members of the Kwatsaduza Geluksdal Forum (KGF) allege they were shot at as they assembled outside Ergo Mine (DRD Gold) last Wednesday morning.
“We got there around 4am. Our protest was peaceful from the beginning,” explained Mncedisi Simelane, one of the group’s members.
They said they intended to hand over a memorandum of demands to the company’s CEO.
Among their demands is the need for the company to provide facilities and shares to people of the surrounding community.
The group also wants the company to commit to making more employment opportunities available to the youth.
“No one from the company came out to meet us and at around 7am, the police arrived,” said Simelane.
The group said officers from both the SAPS and EMPD were on scene.
According to them, after the officers spoke to Ergo employees, the group was told they had to leave because the protest was illegal.
“We applied for a Section 205 on March 9. This is where the EMPD had the opportunity to accept or deny our request to stage the protest, but they did not reply,” explained Thabiso Bashalela, the group’s liaison commissioner.
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After they were told to leave, the group claimed they held hands and created a human chain to show solidarity.
It was soon after, they allege, that officers fired rubber bullets in their direction.
“We started running away from them, but they kept shooting at us,” added Simelane.
Six of the 150 unarmed protestors were injured. Many of the injured sustained wounds to their backs.
“They also tried to confiscate our cellphones when they realised we were taking photos and videos,” said Simelane.
According to James Duncan, who speaks on behalf of DRDGOLD Limited subsidiary Ergo Mining (Pty) Limited, the company confirms the protesters staged unauthorised protest blockades at the entrances to Ergo Brakpan.
“The protesters were dispersed jointly by members of the SAPS and the EMPD after being warned that their action was not authorised. We are grateful to both authorities for their support.
“We have engaged with the KGF in good faith over several months and shared the scope of Ergo’s social and labour plans, which have been approved by and monitored by the Department of Minerals, with their additional corporate social investment contributions.
“It is thus regrettable that the KGF steadfastly refused to furnish proof to DRDGOLD and Ergo of the level of its representativeness of the communities of Kwatsaduza and Geluksdal.”
Duncan added that most recently KGF refused to meet with company representatives at a meeting scheduled for March 16.
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“The KGF continues to believe, unreasonably, that it and the communities it purports to represent somehow have a greater claim to provision from Ergo’s current labour plan and corporate social investment contributions than the other 20+ communities within Ergo’s overall Ekurhuleni and greater Johannesburg footprints.
“The KGF has been put on written notice to desist from making untrue claims regarding the conduct of company officials charged with engaging with it or face legal action.
“Notwithstanding the KGF’s unreasonable conduct, DRDGOLD and Ergo will continue to avail themselves, on provision of appropriate, written undertakings from the KGF, for structured, orderly engagement going forward.”
The EMPD and Springs SAPS have not responded to the Advertiser’s inquiries.
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