Op-Ed | Another Marikana upon us? By Uthman Qasim

On August 16, 2012 , the South African Police Service (SAPS) killed thirty-four miners while 78 others were injured. The massacre marked the deadliest use of violence by the South African security forces on civilian populations since the Soweto riots of 1976 and has been likened to the Sharpeville massacre of 1960. Their crime was demanding a basic monthly living wage of R12,500 (roughly $950 USD at the time), up from their monthly earnings of around R4,000 to R5,000. Their job was extraordinarily dangerous as they lived in squalid, impoverished informal settlements near the mine without adequate basic amenities.

Most of the killed miners were breadwinners supporting their family members in impoverished rural areas. Their deaths sent dozens of dependent families into extreme poverty, leaving many without basic food security, tuition fees, or housing.

Fourteen years later, the South African government is yet to hold those responsible accountable just like many victims and their families are yet to be compensated. The incident is today known as the Marikana Massacre.

In Nigeria, sixty-five miners were arrested in Niger State and thirty-seven died while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) on Thursday, September 17.

This is homicide on a large scale. We can call it Niger Homicide 2026. But this was as alarming as the revelations that follow. When journalists visited the mining site, it was full of children working as miners. A society that sends its children to labour to feed while they are supposed to be in school cannot be called a progressive society. The menace of leaving children on the streets is finally hitting us hard.
Saddened by the death of their relatives, families of the deceased miners took to the street to protest but were met with police fire. It was a case of stopping a child who has been beaten from crying. These were people the police should be consoling and not dispersing.

We hope our government will be responsible enough to act on this homicide. We hope those responsible for this heinous crime will be brought to justice. We hope the victims’ families will be compensated. We hope this will not be another Marikana upon us.

Uthman Qasim
Sanchitagi, Kwara State
uthmanqasim5@gmail.com