May 15, 2020 Shootings, threats and other violence have ratcheted up tensions in Somkhele where a mine extension has exposed deep fault lines in a poor community. Fred Kockott and Matthew Hattingh report The Mthethwa home, near the Somkhele coal mine in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province, was raked by gunfire recently while the family, including…
Keeping safe against Covid-19 is a challenge in Somkhele, where lack of water is a serious issue, but how do you protect yourself against a hail of bullets through your kitchen and bedroom windows after dark where your children are in bed asleep? On Friday, 24 April 2020, a grandmother…
On Tuesday, 17 September 2019, at 9h30, Judge Seegobin granted the Global Environmental Trust (GET) and the Mfolozi Community Environmental Justice Organisation (MCEJO) the right to take their matter to the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein. The attendance at the application for leave to appeal in the Pietermaritzburg High…
The application by the Global Environmental Trust (GET) and the Mfolozi Environmental Justice Organisation (MCEJO), for leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein, has been granted by Judge Rishi Seegobin . The Centre for Environmental Rights was granted the right to intervene as amicus curiae and…
On Wednesday, in the Pietermaritzburg High Court, a strong legal team is determined to ensure the right to appeal the dismissal of GET & MCEJO’s application exposing Tendele coal mine’s lack of compliance with environmental laws and the Constitution, and to ensure the mining sector complies with the law. MEDIA…
The final Spatial Development Framework for the uMfolozi Municipality has been released. The uMfolozi Municipality stretches from the southern borders of the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park to the coast. Map 18 on mining areas shows the area identified for coal mining running along the southern border of the HIP. What is especially…
Asina Loyiko (We do not fear): United against Corporate Bullying, is a joint advocacy campaign launched on 28 May by civil society organisations to protect our hard-won rights to freedom of expression and legitimate political protest. One of the aims is to counter the use of SLAPP lawsuits by corporates.…
On Thursday, 16 May 2019, in the early hours of the morning just before dawn, Mr Gideon Mbongeni Gumede breathed his last. His extended illness, involving pain in his lungs and difficulty breathing was undiagnosed and became increasingly debilitating. He had become critically ill over the weekend and was admitted…
Late Monday afternoon, 15 April, Youens Attorneys, who act for the Global Environmental Trust (GET), received a letter from Tendele mine’s attorneys stating that a recent post on our websites and social media pages was defamatory in stating that the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) report on mining affected…
The wise Greek philosopher, Heraclitus, observed more than 2500 years ago that change is the only thing that is certain. Protesting workers close Tendele mine On 24 August 2018, placard-waving workers from Tendele Coal Mine in Somkhele, stood outside the Pietermaritzburg High Court protesting against our application to close the…
