550 mine workers held hostage at Gold-One mine in Springs
At least 550 Gold-One mineworkers are reportedly held hostage at the GoldOne-East Modderfontein mine in Springs.
The employer said that the mine employees had not returned to the surface since their shift on Sunday night.
NUM spokesperson Livhuwani Mammburu says the hostage situation began on Sunday evening when the workers reported for nightshift and were then prevented from coming back to the surface on Monday morning.
“Nine NUM members got injured after they were assaulted by the hooligans who were preventing them from coming to the surface. They are still preventing them from coming to the surface.
“NUM is also worried that there are a lot of women who are being held hostage underground. This is unacceptable.
“It was only the NUM that fought for women to work in the mining industry in South Africa. We didn’t fight for the women to work in the mining industry in South Africa to be held hostage or kidnapped underground by hooligans,” says Mammburu.
Police said that the miners have been held hostage since then, allegedly by members affiliated to the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu).
However, the union said that it was trying to establish details around the ongoing situation.
Police have confirmed that officers are on standby to monitor any eventualities.
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