Wednesday, 14 August 2013

Marikana and Cosatu

The reader of this blogpost will understand that I have not fully understood the situation. Let me give some short insights:

The Congress of South African Trade Unions' (Cosatu's) central executive committee is gathered tonight in a serious meeting. According to BusinessDayLive the Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi’s fate is on the agenda. He is accused of having raped a woman in the organisation.

On 16 August one year has passed after the massacre at Marikana. Today I read in Mail & Guardian that the new trade union, AMCU, has been recognised as the majority union at Lonmin. The old one, NUM, is a member of Cosatu.

IOL news says that Vavi scandal has claimed its first casualty. A special national executive committee of the SA Democratic Teachers Union has suspended Thobile Ntola, president of the teachers’ union Sadtu. He had allowed Vavi to address a gathering in the Eastern Cape, so that he could explain himself.

There is a discussion in Cosatu whether or not they should support Zuma. As far as I understand Vavi is not a Zuma supporter. But isn't the Vavi story very similar to the Zuma-saga? Some also claim that there is a conspiracy here, just as others said when Zuma was accused for having raped a women.

I don’t understand much but I have to ask: Who cares about the woman who maybe was raped? Who cares about the mine workers in Marikana whose salaries still are too low?



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