Our democracy is being sold to the highest bidder.

Once again the Minister of Mineral Resources has been hopping from conference to conference to sell the myth of a Mining sector that cares for and includes all its stakeholders. 

Conference after conference and meeting after meeting both the Minister and business leaders extoll the virtues of including communities in the solutions faced by the sector.  In this they would be correct, as no sustainable solutions to the problems facing the mining industry will be found without the authentic engagement of all the stakeholders.

Lonmin Platinum Chief Executive Officer Ben Magara, speaking at the gathering of business plutocrats in Cape Town, The World Economic Forum, is reported to have said that “trust between communities and mining houses is important to ensure that the mining industry on the continent is sustainable.”  

At the same time, while addressing the NUM congress, the Minister in turn is reported to have claimed that the Mining Industry Growth Development and Employment Task Team (MIGDETT) had started exploring ways to circumvent the job losses but not all stakeholders were co-operative. “It must be emphasised” he boldly states “that invitations were extended to all stakeholders.”

Both Ben Magara as a representative of the big mining companies and the Minister, are being less than honest in their claims. In fact, their claims are directly opposed to the daily experience of mining affected communities who gain the least and suffer the most from mining operations.

Mining affected communities are engaged in daily struggles with mining companies and with the Department of Mineral Resources to claim their right to be consulted on issues that affect their lives directly. More and more their efforts and protests are being met with violence and deaths at the hands of the police are becoming all too common. In May, two protestors were killed by violent responses from the Police. One in Limpopo and the other in the Eastern Cape.

Yet, despite mining affected communities and civil society efforts to engage the Minister and the Chamber of Commerce, they are consistently met with closed doors and arrogance.

The Minister`s Office is on record as having flatly refused to engage with community based organisations such as MACUA (Mining Affected Communities United in Action) and civil society structures such as the Coalition on the MPRDA (Mineral Petroleum Resources Development Act).
The Minister`s office has instead expressed to the writer that they see no reason why the Minister should consult with community based civil formations as they already have a cosy relationship with traditional leaders.

Is this our democracy? Are we to believe and accept that an industry that impacts so negatively and so severely on the livelihoods and health of such a large section of our society, and one which has conversely the potential to impact so positively on the lives of so many, is beyond democratic interventions and rests in the hands of a patriarchal male dominated elite?

When the writer pointed out to the Minister`s Office that our Constitution specifically enjoins a participatory duty on the duty bearers such as the DMR and the Minister, communication was abruptly ended and no further responses were received from the Ministers Office. It might be worthwhile to point out to the Ministers Office that closed doors and refusals to engage will not change the constitutional imperative placed on the Ministers office.

In the course of his judgment in the case of Doctors for Life International v The Speaker of the National Assembly and Others, Decided on: 17 August 2006, Justice Ngcobo J dealt extensively with the importance of participatory democracy in our constitutional order and the nature of the constitutional obligation imposed on the legislature to facilitate public involvement.

In the Constitutional courts Media summary it stated; “that our Constitution was inspired by a particular vision of a non-racial and democratic society in which government is based on the will of the people. The very first provision of the Constitution, which establishes the founding values of our constitutional democracy, includes as part of those values “a multi-party system of democratic government, to ensure accountability, responsiveness and openness.” Commitment to principles of accountability, responsiveness and openness shows that our constitutional democracy is not only representative but also contains participatory elements. This is a defining feature of the democracy that is contemplated. He also stated that in the overall scheme of our Constitution, the representative and participatory elements of our democracy should not be seen as being in tension with each other. They must be seen as mutually supportive. “


Both the Chamber of Mines and Government have a duty to ensure that the spirit of our constitution is not subverted by crass untruths and vested interests.

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