We have no govt say miners at Lily Mine, Mpumalanga
15 January 2020
Today I responded to a call from the families and colleagues of the three miners who have been trapped in Lily Mine since a collapse occurred in January 2016.
The stories that were shared by these South Africans are nothing short of heart-wrenching.
In January 2016, the main entrance to the Lily Mine collapsed, trapping three miners in a container underground. In order to affect the rescue operation, a new shaft had to be opened to provide emergency personnel the access they require. Shortly afterwards, the company with the mining rights went into business rescue, and ever since then, the family, friends and colleagues of Pretty Nkambule, Solomon Nyarenda and Yvonne Mnisi have languished without the closure they need.
These South Africans have been treated with the most profound lack of respect. Every sphere of government has failed to provide them clarity in terms of what is going on, or the support they need. As one of the miners said during our engagement, “we do not have a government in our country.”