August 16 2012. Thirty-four miners, mostly employed by Lonmin, on strike for a wage hike, were shot and killed by South African police in Marikana in Rustenburg, South Africa.The men who died left behind wives and children who have suffered both pain and poverty in their loss.
FORBES WOMAN AFRICA visited six young widows who have now relocated to Marikana to work and be their families’ sole bread-winners. Most of them are cleaners earning a little more than their husbands did, living in a hostel at the Vulindlela Training Institute (that trains miners). They all share the same anger at the cops who shot down their men and changed their lives forever.
Walking around Vulindlela, you soon realize most of those affected by the Marikana massacre are resident in this area. It is now a community of the inconsolable, as they go about their lives at work or at school, returning to neighbourly chats, and time alone reflecting their fate.
They speak in chaste isiXhosa and seSotho, languages tough for an average Johannesburg-born city dweller like me to comprehend. But their emotions convey more than any language can ever do, as these pictures that follow show.
Double tragedy
When Lesotho-born Mathabile Monesa, 25, lost her husband Khanane Elias Monesa that fateful day in Marikana, she was pregnant. At the time, she was living with her in-laws in Lesotho and her husband was the sole provider to a family of nine.
There was more tragedy in store.
Weeks after his death, she was admitted to hospital and lost their unborn child, a son. Doctors put it down to stress and depression.
“It was painful knowing that our provider was killed, knowing that I now have to put food on the table for the family with the money I made from sewing,” says Monesa.
Monesa hopes the R12,500 ($900) the miners were fighting for will also be given to the widows in the future.
This story is from the October-November 2015 edition of Forbes Woman Africa.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October-November 2015 edition of Forbes Woman Africa.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Well-Grounded
Coco Cachalia, whose mother Amina was among the 20,000 in the Women’s March of August 1956, made a decision to stay away from politics – and succeed in business instead.
Art Becomes Her
A celebrated international fine artist, Mmakgabo Helen Sebidi overcame the struggles of apartheid, and her work is grounded in her past.
'Not Just Pro-Women But Pro-Progress'
South Africa’s Minister of Women Susan Shabangu on the significance of the 61st anniversary of Women’s Day, and the role men can play in ending gender violence in South Africa and creating an equal society.
Diversity And Inclusion Are Part Of Baker Mckenzie's DNA
According to Law360’s 2017 Glass Ceiling Report, women make up around one-third of the attorneys in private legal practice. Among the law firms surveyed, just below 23% of partners are female.
We, Men For Women
South Africa still has a long way to go for gender justice in business and in life, but with more men openly stepping forward to be a part of the discourse, FORBES WOMAN AFRICA speaks to two male entrepreneurs, a CEO and a social activist. They acknowledge diversity makes smart social and economic sense that will benefit all.
What, After All, Does Feminism Have To Do With Men?
According to the seminal African-American writer bell hooks (her name is not capitalized), feminism is for everybody.
Blood, Setbacks And Tears
Two sisters with common failures and a dream to eventually succeed.
Fighting To The End
In May, 82 more Chibok girls were released in exchange for Boko Haram prisoners. Oby Ezekwesili, a strong advocate in the campaign to bring them back, has vowed to never stop fighting.
Not Just Hard Work, But Heart Work
As incidents of gender-based violence increase in Africa, those like Nigeria’s Kemi Dasilva-Ibru, are trying to bring relief to stigmatized victims.
Going Down The Spice Route
Essie Bartels worked several odd jobs she hated before opening a company selling mouth-watering spices and sentiments to the world.
