Marikana: 34 Miners Killed by Police at Lonmin Mine

The Marikana massacre was the day post-apartheid South Africa lost its innocence.

On 16 August 2012, at approximately 15:53, SAPS opened fire on striking platinum miners at Lonmin's Marikana operations near Rustenburg. 34 men were killed and 78 wounded. Television cameras captured it all.

The miners — rock drill operators — had been on wildcat strike since 10 August, demanding R12,500 per month. Cyril Ramaphosa, then a Lonmin non-executive director, described them as "dastardly criminal" and called for "concomitant action" in emails to management and ministers before the massacre.

SAPS National Commissioner Riah Phiyega had been in office for only two months. She had no policing background — a cadre deployment. After the massacre, she congratulated the officers involved.

The Farlam Commission (R153M, 3 years) criticised SAPS planning but stopped short of criminal blame. Phiyega was removed in 2017. No police officer has been criminally charged. R70M was paid to 35 families. Over 300 injured miners are still seeking R1B in compensation more than a decade later.