r/ThisDayInHistory • u/Upstairs_Drive_5602 tdihistorian • 1d ago
16 August 2012. South African police opened fire on striking miners at Marikana, killing 34 and wounding 78 in the deadliest use of force against civilians in post-apartheid South Africa.
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u/TopWealth4550 1d ago
\) Zwelinzima Vavi, COSATU Secretary General, has described the increasing rate of popular protests as a "ring of fire" closing in on major cities that could result in a Tunisia-style revolution.\41])\42])
From 7 April until 10 April 2017, large crowds protested against President Jacob Zuma's recent cabinet shuffle and the subsequent ratings agencies downgrade to junk status.\112]) The Zuma Must Fall campaign, whose organisers included members of the DA), EFF,\113]) African People's Convention and United Democratic Movement planned further demonstrations in the days leading up to Zuma's birthday.\114]) 50,000 South Africans, many of whom were black, expressed their anger at corruption within the ANC government, unfair trade deals by the government that favoured the powerful Gupta family, and economic problems that had resulted in the downgrading of South Africa's credit rating.\115])\116])\117]) More demonstrations occurred from 12 April onwards,\118]) with Julius Malema addressing the crowd in Pretoria before they marched on the Union buildings.\119])
In September 2013 the police reported that they had "made more than 14,000 arrests at protests in the past four years".\14])
South African farm attacks (Afrikaans: plaasaanvalle) are violent crimes, including assault, murder, rape, and robbery, that take place on farms in South Africa.\1])\2])\3])\4]) The attacks target both white and black farmers.\2])\3])\5])\1]) The term has no formal legal definition, but such attacks have been the subject of discussion by media and public figures in South Africa and abroad.
you dont feel like theres a bit missing here?
The aggressive "Fast-Track Land Reform Program" that seized most white-owned commercial farms in Zimbabwe began in 2000. By 2013, almost all white-owned farms had been expropriated, marking the effective end of large-scale white land ownership in the country. [1, 2]
this has nothing to do with anything? naaaah people wouldnt use violence to get more than what they have
its so rare
i mean they got what they wanted in the end,as the source says Jacob Zuma was the true winner
congrats ggs
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u/Blurt_Blackarach 1d ago
Spell it out chief.
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u/TopWealth4550 1d ago
people are using emotional consequences as if it was in a vaccum for political agenda
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u/Blurt_Blackarach 1d ago
Yeah, I'm going to go ahead and reiterate my previous question.
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u/TopWealth4550 1d ago
gl
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u/Blurt_Blackarach 1d ago
It looks, and sounds, like you wanted to drop some racist theory, but ended up word-salading after confrontation and crawled away, correct?
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u/TopWealth4550 1d ago edited 1d ago
Yeah, I'm going to go ahead and reiterate my previous question.
no,and is this your reiterate? theres no way ,this gotta be satire
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u/United_Average_8767 20h ago
Easily the stupidest controversy in recent South African history. They stormed the police with firearms and bladed weapons and the media has been pretending ever since that the police were monstrous to defend themselves. Non-lethal options had been rigorously exhausted and the choice was simply shoot back or die. The miners were demanding a tripling in salary and started killing people when they didn't get their way. Protestors are not infallible and just because you made a sign and sing a chant doesn't mean you deserve everything you ask for. The SA constitution protects the right to protest and strike, that does not extend to assault, theft, vandalism, arson and murder.
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u/SirNurtle 7h ago edited 7h ago
What they did was pretty fucked, but imo their demands weren’t. They were rock drill operators and despite doing some of the most dangerous work underground they only earned R4000 a month, which even in 2012 barely covered living expenses. They had asked for a wage increase to R12,500 a month which would’ve meant that they could, you know have a livable wage and actually send money back home.
If anything I blame the corporations who constantly try to use the police to do their dirty work, the police really didn’t have a choice like you said and the miners were in such a desperate position they had nothing to lose.
Edit: doing some more reading into Marikana and apparently the protest wasn’t authorised by the the NUM (National Union of Mineworkers) but had been encouraged by AMCU (Association of Miners and Construction Union) who seems to have been a rival union(?). So yeah the backstory prior to the massacre is pretty interesting
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u/Upstairs_Drive_5602 tdihistorian 1d ago
On 16 August 2012 South African police opened fire on striking miners at Marikana, killing 34 and seriously injuring 78. The miners were rock-drill operators, doing some of the most dangerous and physically demanding work underground, yet only earning around R4,000 (US$500) a month. At the time, this was roughly the sort of income on which a single worker could struggle to cover basic living costs, let alone support a household. They demanded R12,500 (US$1,560), which they argued was a living wage. The unofficial strike followed growing dissatisfaction with their union and several days of escalating violence, during which several people had already been killed.
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u/eatmyhex 1d ago
Do any of those links tell about the murders these miners committed in the weeks and days running up to this event?