"It is very sad that today I am being sentenced for something which I did not do with my own hands. I have no-one's blood on my hands. That is all." These were the words of Lucky Nomnganga before he was sentenced to death by the judge in Welkom in November 1988. Lucky Nomnganga was the secretary of the shaft stewards's committee at the Number 6 shaft at Western Holdings Gold Mine near Welkom in the Free State. The court case concerned the events of 5 June 1987, when two white mine officials were murdered at the mine. One of them was a mine engineer and the other a mine security officer. Six mineworkers were shot dead by mine security guards the same day. This is an analysis of that event and the search for justice.
Murder on the Mines
Graeme Simpson
Graeme Simpson, Co-founder of CSVR and former Executive Director, is an experienced peacebuilder with international expertise in violence, reconciliation and transitional justice. He holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from The University of the Witwatersrand, Master's degree History from the University of The Witwatersrand and BA Hons History; African Politics; Industrial sociology from The University of the Witwatersrand.
