Xolobeni community want answers at meeting
Police to face questions about activist’s death
Activists opposing the titanium mining project in Xolobeni in the Eastern Cape are hoping for answers from the Department of Mineral Resources and the police at a community meeting next week.
At the meeting on 19 July the Eastern Cape police will be questioned about progress in the investigation into the assassination of the chairman of the Amadiba Crisis Committee, Sikhosiphi Bazooka, on 23 March this year.
The committee is opposed to attempts by Australian company Mineral Commodities and its partners in the area to mine titanium in Xolobeni.
In May, about 60 participants from civil society organisations marched through Cape Town in protest at the mining project.
Committee member Nonhle Mbuthuma said hundreds of people were expected to attend the meeting next week and the sports field would be used instead of the community hall.
“We have heard nothing from the police or the DMR about our complaints. During the meeting next week, we want to know from the DMR how far things are regarding the application made in 2014 about mining rights and we want the police to tell us how they are dealing with the issues of keeping us safe in Xolobeni. Because at the moment, we do not feel safe.”
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