Celani Sikhakhane
The mineworkers’ strike at the Zululand Anthracite Colliery in Nongoma has turned violent.
A female worker is recovering in hospital after she was shot in the thigh on Monday night, allegedly by her striking colleagues who have vowed to fight anyone returning to work before their demands are met by management.
On Monday the strike at the Okhukho mine entered its fifth week.
The victim, Noma Khumalo, was rushed to a hospital in eMpangeni by paramedics after she was shot while working at the Ngwenya belt shaft.
The woman shared her painful ordeal of being shot to her family members and close friends in a recorded voice note on WhatsApp.
She told her family that she believed that she was shot by striking miners.
“Our employer is demanding us to come to work today but he doesn’t want to commit to taking care of our families should we be killed.
“We told him that we are facing danger and those who are on strike have made it clear that once the coal machine starts operating, they will shoot everything there,” she said in the voice note.
Khumalo is one of the coal belt operators who was working at the plant on Monday.
Workers no longer trust each other and some have threatened to kill anyone who is found working.
Union leaders are no longer willing to talk to the media, citing the tense situation at ZAC.
One of the leaders, who didn’t want to be named, told Scrolla.Africa that the safety of the workers is no longer guaranteed.
“The situation is tense and the employers seem to be unable to understand this crisis,” he said. “Workers are angry and it is bad because now others are being shot at work as they are not on strike.”
The strike started on 14 April and on the 19th, workers went underground to stage a sit-in until 25 April.
They were removed after the company decided to switch off their oxygen and electricity.
ZAC general manager Wayne Rowe refused to comment when he was contacted about the incident.
KwaZulu-Natal provincial police spokesperson Colonel Nqobile Gwala confirms the shooting and said they are investigating a case of attempted murder.
