Messages of hope

Over the years, we have heard and drawn wisdom from Prof Thuli Madonsela, Dr Mamphela Ramphele, Prof Adam Habib, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman and Dr Andile Sanqu. All of them had some connection with Marikana – often indirectly. All of them reflected closely on the events leading up to and after that fateful day.

They considered the ripple effect on the people who most closely bore the consequences, and the impact that it had on our society. None of them minced their words, never holding back on considering the fallout from the tragedy and its causes, whether this was addressed to us in the mining industry, to government and unions alike.

Today, as I contribute to this lecture, I do so for the last time, as I will be retiring from Sibanye-Stillwater later this year. But I know that I will closely watch – and learn from – these lectures in the coming years with interest, thoughtfulness and gratitude

The address we will hear today – from Advocate Geoff Budlender – will no doubt live up to those that have graced this platform in previous years. And I extend my personal thanks to Judge Farlam, and also to Archbishop Makgoba, for his words of wisdom and his continuing support as the Patron of the Marikana Renewal programme.

Today, we mark not just the continuation of this journey, but the beginning of what I believe is a new chapter in the Marikana renewal: a chapter built on reflection, resilience and a shared commitment to a better future.

I will speak to you today through the lens of the guiding pillars that have shaped our path: Honour, Engage and Create.

But before I do, I want to share a few very personal reflections on what I have learned during this process and how it has affected me on a very personal level.

I, like many others, watched the local and global news in August 2012, and the unthinkable events that unfolded that day. I felt the sense of horror and loss deeply – as a father, partner and as a miner.

I learned of the complexity and context of this tragedy in my role at the Minerals Council, which was then the Chamber of Mines. I reflected as a mining company leader – what could and should have been done differently. But it was only in 2019 when Sibanye- Stillwater acquired the failing Lonmin assets at Marikana that I needed to face these issues first-hand.

There are three particular moments that stand out in shaping my perspectives of the tragedy:

• The first is our very first meeting with the widows. We met with the widows first before any other stakeholder and before we took over the Lonmin operations – not as a gesture, but as a principle. We knew that we could not successfully integrate the Marikana assets into Sibanye-Stillwater without an indication that the past could be addressed.
  
  I was humbled by their willingness to listen and to engage and simply give us a chance. It struck me then, as it does now, that no- one had done that.
  
  At the heart of our renewal process is honour – honouring the lives lost, the pain endured and the promises made. Many thought we would sweep the tragedy under the carpet. We did not. We faced it head-on.
  
  Since then, we have completed the houses we committed to build for the widows and their families. We honoured the promises made by Lonmin, even though these were made before our time. And we continue to honour the memory of those who are no longer with us, not just in word, but in action.
• The second event was something that I very rarely talk about, not because it was not important, but because it was. I was profoundly touched, when in a more recent engagement with the widows, one of them, Mrs Mabelane, presented me with a watch that had belonged to her husband. She said that this gift was in recognition of the work we were doing with the widows on the justice programme. Today, that watch takes pride of place in my collection of corporate achievements – it represents hope, forgiveness and a connection of the past and the future bound by a collective commitment to do right by the families and to ensure that as an industry we learn from a past we vow will never be repeated in our lifetime.
  
  This was an incredibly moving moment for me, but I am very cognisant that justice has not yet been served. And, it must be said, that there won’t be complete closure for the families until there is justice. This must remain a focus area going forward, and Sibanye- Stillwater pledges to continue our support.
  
• A third moment happened a few weeks back, when we visited Marikana and met with the student beneficiaries of the educational trust we had set up to ensure that the children of the men who had died could have access to quality education.
  
  I was overwhelmed when a graduate who had been supported by the Trust, and who now works for Sibanye-Stillwater, presented me with a Basotho blanket and hat.
  
• These are gifts that I will treasure and that will have a special place in my heart. But what will stay with me more than anything else was to see his success, and to know that we had played a small part in creating a positive outcome from adversity. With this robing by Mr Liau, I stood proxy for the company with a clear indication from him and the other beneficiaries that we are on the right track as a collective in ensuring that the children of the deceased not only find closure but are set for success in their chosen careers. To date, R77.4 million has been invested to support the educational journey of the dependants of the deceased, from early childhood to postgraduate level, with 157 beneficiaries supported. Of these beneficiaries, 16 have graduated with degrees and three have obtained post- graduate qualifications.
  

Marikana has taught me more than any leadership course ever could.

I’ve learned that leadership is not about commanding outcomes — it’s about empowering people to do the right thing, to engage with their circumstances, and truly care. I’ve learned that humility is recognising the hardship of others, listening deeply and understanding that real change comes from sincerity, not strategy.

I must admit that I have been embarrassed when some of the successes we have achieved have been attributed to me. The real delivery came not from me, but from the people within our organisation who embraced our vision and made it real.

And I have learned to tune out the distractions. There will always be voices with other agendas but we must stay true to our purpose.

Sometimes this does mean that we must have thick skins but so be it.

I have spoken about the three pillars that have been the foundation of our renewal programme: Honour, Engage and Create.

Our commitment to honour remains, and we will continue to do so with respect. We are making good progress with the Memorial that is planned for the koppie. It has taken time – more than I would have liked — but this is not something we drive on our own. It’s a collaborative effort that we are all a part of and what we leave behind must have real meaning for those who were most closely affected.

We have now reached a collective agreement with the government, the Bapo Ba Mogale, families, AMCU and some of the landowners to create a memorial at the Koppie (Wonderkop) in Nkaneng. The process to declare Wonderkop a Heritage site has commenced and architectural drawings are being finalised.

Engagement has been, and will continue to be, the cornerstone of our approach.

We listened to the families, the communities, the stakeholders. And, in developing the programmes and structures we have put in place, we did not just consult – we co-created.

We have brought in partners, funders and development agencies. We worked with local leaders, even those who were once adversarial.

We created platforms for dialogue, even when consensus seemed impossible.

And we accepted that not everyone would come to the table, but we have moved forward with those who did.

From engagement came creation.

We have created new opportunities – educational, economic and social. Over 100 young people now serve as community safety coordinators for instance in addressing a fundamental need to improve safety in the area. Students from our Educational Trust have become graduates and some even our employees.

The Marikana Agri-hub, a partnership with the Mineworkers’ Development Agency, already offers skills and small business development services, a commercial egg- laying facility, an internet café, a packing shed, an enterprise incubator and an agricultural training centre.

We are investing with the Development Bank of Southern Africa to build the Amandla Marikana D-lab precinct. This precinct will include a football academy and youth sports infrastructure, an early childhood development centre, a digital learning hub that will create safe spaces for learning, wellness and innovation – creating a “safe hub” to promote youth development and social cohesion.

We are building schools in partnership with the Bapo ba Magale community.

We are creating a post-mining economy that can thrive beyond the life of the mine. This is not just renewal – it is transformation.

I have spoken over a number of years of the frameworks that guide us in our efforts to leave a lasting legacy that will enable mine communities to thrive and grow.

Our entire approach at Marikana has been founded in our Umdoni Tree, which expresses our fundamental business ethos. It is more than a symbol. It is a promise – about who we are, what we will do and how we will behave.

It is not far-fetched to say that the Umdoni Tree has been our guiding light. It represents our values, our interconnectedness with the social ecosystem and our commitment to delivering shared value to all our stakeholders. We gave each widow a print of the tree, not as a token, but as a promise.

The tree reminds us that we are not the centre – we are participants in a greater whole. Every stakeholder has a role. Every voice matters.

And when we understand that, we can build something truly sustainable.

The second framework that guides our work is the Good Neighbour Agreement, which serves as the framework for community relations at our US PGM operations and has inspired our work at Marikana. This was a unique agreement in the mining industry when it was signed over 25 years ago as a legally binding contract between the mine and its local stakeholders. It has evolved to become a living and collaborative compact between the company and the community. It commits us jointly to a framework for protecting the natural environment while at the same time encouraging responsible economic development. The basic principles have served us well in a very different social context, with the progress at Marikana demonstrating the robustness and transferability of the philosophy.

I would venture to suggest that these experiences in creating real value for stakeholders from mines at a local level make the Zambezi Protocol compelling for broader application at national level.

The Zambezi Protocol remains a vital framework for us and one that – if applied to broader society – could be transformative. It speaks to humility, legacy and leadership. It reminds us that good governance is not about control but about inclusion.

But until we secure a wider national application of Zambezi Protocol principles based on enhanced levels of trust among all stakeholders in the broader shared interest, we will not attain the potential that our beloved nation holds.

I am hopeful that the forthcoming national dialogue will go a long way to creating an improved shared understanding and place accountability on all to work collectively in support of shared goals.

I am deeply proud of what we have achieved at Marikana but I know that more needs to be done. Trust is fragile and needs to be earned every day, and we have a team – led by Richard Stewart – that is willing and able to do so.

We need – both as a company and industry – to demonstrate that we are prepared to live up to the promises we make, and we need to drive – as an industry – the upliftment of our sector in its entirety. Mining and our products will not be judged at one company alone, but by the lowest common denominator amongst us. We do not just carry the legacy of Marikana – as the industry, we carry the responsibility for it and to ensure it never happens again.

That is why we, as a company, are fully committed to the new consolidated mining standard being developed jointly by the ICMM, the World Gold Council, the Copper Mark and the Mining Association of Canada. This global benchmark is being developed first through consultation and will be held to account through multi-stakeholder governance. This is the future: shared leadership, shared responsibility, shared outcomes.

We have at Marikana, I believe, created a model that is now seen as world-class. And we have done it by staying true to our ethos – doing the right thing, even when it is hard to do so.

As I move into my new chapter, my message to my colleagues and our stakeholders is this. Let us carry forward the lessons, the honour, the engagement, and the creation.

Let us root ourselves in the values of the Umdoni Tree guided by our commitment to creating shared value.

Marikana is not just a place. It is a symbol of reckoning, of renewal and of what is possible when we lead with heart, humility and hope.

Thank you.