[miningmx.com] — THE ANC Youth League on Thursday handed a memorandum with demands to South Africa’s Chamber of Mines.
Here is the complete, unedited, memorandum in full, together with the Chamber’s response:
ANC YOUTH LEAGUE’S MEMORANDUM TO THE CHAMBER OF MINES:
We, the youth of South Africa, the unemployed, marginalised, homeless, the economically downtrodden, and all of us who wish to have access to quality free education, housing, electricity, and sustainable livelihoods demand urgent economic freedom in our lifetime. Economic freedom in our lifetime means total achievement of Freedom Charter objectives, particularly on the transfer of wealth to the ownership of the people as a whole.
The Chamber of Mines is a recipient of Economic Freedom Mass Action because of its role in the history of racialised economic development of South Africa. This includes, but not limited to development of an exclusively white mining capital with massive influence and contribution to legislation that subjugated, excluded, oppressed and super-exploited blacks and Africans in the entire Mining value.
We come here as Economic Freedom Fighters carrying the burden of the millions of the economically excluded, subjugated, oppressed, exploited and depressed South Africans in the Economic Freedom Mass Action under the leadership of the ANC Youth League to make the following demands:
To the Chamber of Mines we demand the following:
1. Nationalisation of South Africa`s Mines. The State should own and control a minimum of 60% of South Africa`s Mines.
2. Local beneficiation and industrialisation of a minimum of 60% of the minerals extracted from beneath South Africa`s soil. The beneficiation should happen in the communities where Mining happens.
3. Provision of education, skills and expertise to South African youth in order to capacitate them to play a meaningful role in the entire mining value-chain.
4. Betterment of working conditions in all Mines to prevent avoidable fatalities and diseases.
5. Better salaries and wages for all Mineworkers, and provision of full employment for workers currently employed as contract workers.
6. An end to import-parity pricing on the South Africa minerals to boast the manufacturing, industrialisation and infrastructure development.
Active involvement of Mining corporations in the development of Mining communities, particularly on the construction and maintenance of roads, health facilities, schools, technical training colleges, and other public infrastructure.
8. Local manufacturing of supplies and other necessities required for mining, including beneficiation and industrialisation.
9. Development of a concrete social and labour development model, which will ensure that communities around the Mines are developed out of the proceeds of Mining.
10. Re-alignment of South Africa`s Industrial Policy and action plan around to consider the reality that the State will be in control and ownership of Mines and mineral resources, so as to guide a concrete plan on minerals’ beneficiation and industrialisation.
11. Amendment of Section 25 of South Africa`s Constitution to empower the State to expropriate in the public interest with or without compensation.
12. Cessation of threats of disinvestment by Mining Capital.
13. Compensation of Mining communities that continue to suffer diseases and infections as a result of Mining and minerals’ extraction, particularly the asbestos communities.
We expect urgent action plans and programmes on these demands, on the view that non concession to these demands will lead to social instability due to continued economic exclusion of the black majority and Africans in particular. We will never allow Mining business to continue to extract and massively benefit from South Africa`s minerals whilst our communities are left with diseases, deeper poverty and degradation of infrastructure, rivers and environment.
These demands are genuine and should be acceded to with immediate effect, because we cannot afford to wait any longer.
THE CHAMBER OF MINES MEDIA STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO ANCYL PETITION (UNEDITED):
The CEO of the Chamber of Mines, Mr Bheki Sibiya, today briefed members of the media on the Chamber of Mines’ position regarding issues raised by the African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) following its march to the Chamber of Mines as part of its economic freedom campaign.
In his briefing, Mr Sibiya said the Chamber of Mines and its members were in agreement with the stated objectives of the ANCYL to reduce poverty and inequality as well as to create jobs, particularly for the youth. However, the Chamber did not agree with the mechanisms proposed by the ANCYL, in particular nationalization, as this will severely damage the economic performance of the country and thus leave the population as a whole in a much worst state than before.
He said the leadership of the mining industry had recently committed itself to working in a manner that put the interests of South Africa first, including initiatives aimed at effectively addressing unemployment, poverty and inequality. “Our members have been involved in some of these initiatives in the communities in which they operate through their individual Corporate Responsibility Investments as well as in the implementation of their Social Labour Plans which form part of their licensing requirements. Our commitment to work in a manner that puts the interests of the country first follows our realization that no single stakeholder can effectively address the problems of the country – the involvement of all stakeholders, including the mining industry and the rest of business, communities, national and local government as well as organized labour, all need to collectively address the problems of the country’, said Mr Sibiya.
Mr Sibiya further told members of the media that it was in this spirit that the Chamber of Mines had invited the ANCYL for a meeting to discuss ways of addressing issues of common interest including how the mining industry could contribute further in addressing issues affecting the youth. “We are still waiting for the ANCYL’s response to our request’, said Mr Sibiya.
Adding that the Chamber of Mines was encouraged by the remarks made by the Minister of Finance in his Medium Term Budget Policy Statement regarding constraints faced by the mining industry to create jobs, Mr Sibiya said he was hopeful that government will give initiatives currently in place the requisite impetus to remove constraints inhibiting the growth of the mining industry. He concluded by telling members of the media that the Chamber membership will consider the issues raised by the ANCYL in its petition and will respond accordingly.
