It took Gamelihle Jawuza 45 minutes to walk up from underground when he and other miners came to the surface on Wednesday at the Gold One Modder East shaft in Springs, where he was participating in a protest sit-in amid union rivalry.
“It was bad down there because we are hungry. The last food we had was on Monday. That was donated by the workers. Since then there was no food sent down and no communication,” he said.
“A lot of us are out and some are still coming up. People are [dehydrated] so they will come slowly.”
An estimated 100 miners had surfaced by midmorning. The company has deployed proto teams and security to assist those needing help.
The protest started on Sunday evening when more than 500 miners went underground for their shift but did not come up. The chief demand shared with the company was for freedom to associate with the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) as a union of choice, and not the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), as per its closed-shop agreement.
The NUM said many of those underground were its members and were being kept hostage against their will. Amcu denied this.
An operational centre was set up at the mine to handle the emergency situation and the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration was invited to a meeting on Tuesday in an effort to break the impasse. Police hostage negotiators were also at the scene.
Gold One spokesperson Jon Hericourt said they had received reports that some of those underground had modified weapons improvised from items available underground, such as roof bolts and charging up sticks.
He confirmed the mine did not send food underground.
“There are rumours that some food was smuggled down on a few occasions, but this was probably for the hostage takers.”
Police spokesperson Brig Brenda Muridili confirmed police were investigating the drama as a hostage situation.
She said police had confirmed that 107 miners had made their way to the surface on Wednesday morning.
We weren’t afraid. When you’re many you don’t get scared because we comfort each other
— Miner Mlungisi Mdingwa
“They were checked by paramedics on site and then a few were interviewed and statements taken by the detectives on site. Some have since been released to go home.
“It has been confirmed by those interviewed by detectives that they were indeed held against their will by a group of about 15 or so.”
Two paramedics and a security officer are among those still underground.
“The police and other roleplayers will remain on site until the situation has been resolved,” Muridili said.
Jawuza said he has been working at the mine for two years. For him, this was not a hostage situation but a protest.
“We are trying to fight for our rights.”
After taking a shower and visiting the mine clinic for medical checks, Mlungisi Mdingwa came to the barricaded entrance of Gold One Modder East shaft to greet his colleagues. A group of fellow miners and family members had gathered there since news of the dispute emerged.
“We went in [on Sunday] and we were told we must put our tools down and we didn’t work. We were sitting and there was nothing said to us on Sunday.
“Only on Monday night we were told there was food, soup and two slices of bread.
“We were many. Some people didn’t get food because at one point there was no order and some would grab for themselves. When the food came, those who brought it told us the food was donated by Amcu,” said Mdingwa.
“We sat in groups and on Monday night we didn’t have electricity in some parts so we used lanterns. We weren’t afraid. When you’re many you don’t get scared because we comfort each other.”
He said they made the decision to emerge because of a lack of food and communication.
“We had to reconsider and get out because we were going to die from hunger. No-one spoke to us, not management or NUM.”
The walk through the tunnel took longer than usual because they were tired and weak from hunger.
“The women [miners] are also coming but they couldn’t walk as fast as us men. Normally it takes 45 minutes but today it took us up to two hours,” said Mdingwa.
“We haven’t met any officials. We have just finished showering and we’re still going through medical checks. They said if we have stress there are people to talk to who can help us.”
Victor Ngwane of NUM said 63 women were trapped underground, of whom only two have surfaced.
Commenting on the lack of supplies for those underground, Ngwane said: “Some were hiding in other areas of the shaft and food didn’t reach them. The supplies were there but did not reach them. That’s the reports we were getting.”
This is a developing story.
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