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Saturday, 16 August 2025, will mark thirteen years since the Marikana massacre, which took place in 2012. Justice remains out of reach. No prosecutions have been issued for the mineworkers who were killed on the 16^th of August 2012. Neither has anyone been held to account for the physical and psychological injuries suffered by many more. Without bringing prosecutions for the massacre of 16 August 2012, the state continues to fail the families of the deceased and the survivors of the massacre.

Forty-four people were killed between 12 and 16 August, including 34 mineworkers who were massacred by the police on the 16^th of August. According to the Farlam Commission of Inquiry report, police fired over 300 rounds of live ammunition over an eight to twelve second period at ‘scene 1’ where 16 mineworkers died. Police then pursued the fleeing mineworkers into the surrounding rocky area and killed another 17 at ‘scene 2’, having fired 295 rounds of ammunition. Fourteen of the 17 died on the scene. Although police are found to have tampered with the crime scene, at least ten of those killed at scene 2 appeared to be seeking refuge, while others found appeared to have been killed while fleeing. The report details how, despite being present, paramedics were not allowed to administer care to the mineworkers at scene 1 for about an hour and medical attention to scene 2 was also delayed.

In addition to the deaths, at least another 78 of the miners were severely injured and approximately 250 arrested. Despite repeated assurances of its commitment to dealing with the criminal proceedings relating to the deaths at Marikana, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) has failed to prosecute anyone for the deaths of mineworkers arising from the events of 16 August 2012.

To date, the NPA has only prosecuted nine police officers, some in relation to the events of 13 August 2012 and others concerning the circumstances surrounding of one of the deaths from the massacre. In 2021, former North West Deputy Police Commissioner Major-General Mpembe, along with officers Gideon van Zyl, Dingaan Madoda and Oupa Pule were acquitted in the matter relating to the death of mineworker Mr. Modisaotsile van Wyk Sagalala, one of the 34 mineworkers shot at ‘scene 2’ on 16 August 2012 who died while handcuffed at the back of a police truck. The South African Police Service had testified at the Marikana Commission of Inquiry that Mr. Sagalala died at the Andrew Saffie hospital instead. In a separate case that was concluded in September 2024, the High Court acquitted six officers (Mpembe, retired Colonel Salmon Johannes Vermaak and officers Nkosana Mguye, Masilo Mogale, Katlego Joseph Sekgweleya, and Khazamola Phillip Makhubela), for their role in the events of 13 August 2012. These events resulted in the deaths of three mineworkers (Mr. Semi Jokanisi, Mr. Thembelakhe Mati and Mr. Pumzile Sokanyile) as well as two police officers (Warrant Officer Tsietsi Hendrik Monene, and Warrant Officer Sello Ronnie Lepaauku).  

The two trials that concluded in 2021 and 2024 sat sporadically and were slow-moving. They have been the closest that the families have come to learning the true details about the deaths of their loved ones and obtaining some form of closure. Both failed prosecutions have shown the corrosive impact that the passage of time has had on the strength of the state’s cases, which means that further delays in prosecutions is to deny the families justice and an opportunity to see those implicated being held to account.

In 2023, the NPA issued a statement detailing various personnel and resource constraints as reasons for their failure to prosecute the Marikana case. However, two more years have passed, and the families and survivors of the massacre have still not seen any progress concerning prosecutions for the massacre of 16 August 2012. Following the acquittals in 2024, the families were told that the NPA would consider an appeal but have heard nothing since. This inaction reflects a lack of commitment to ensuring the families obtain justice for the deaths of their loved ones. Over the years several family members have died before seeing any meaningful form of accountability.

Aside from justice for the families, prosecutions for the massacre are consistent with South Africa’s international obligations concerning victims of gross human rights violations, of which the Marikana massacre is emblematic. According to the United Nation’s Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy adopted by the General Assembly in 2005, the South African government has an obligation to:

• Investigate violations effectively, promptly, thoroughly, and impartially, and prosecute those responsible;
• Ensure equal and effective access to justice for victims;
• Provide effective remedies to victims, including reparation.

SERI executive director, Nomzamo Zondo, has said that: “The failure to hold accountable those responsible for these deaths is a betrayal of the promise of justice. Not only does it dishonour the families of the deceased but erodes trust in our justice system." Marikana has arguably been the most politicised incident of police brutality since 1994. It has left permanent scars on our democracy.

SERI continues to mourn the deaths of those killed at Marikana in 2012. The families have sought accountability for the deaths of their loved ones for the past thirteen years. We urge the NPA to finally demonstrate its commitment to justice by issuing prosecutions for the deaths at Marikana without fear, favour or prejudice. As a country that abides by the rule of law, it is crucial that justice is administered equally and that the families and survivors of the massacre are given the opportunity to obtain closure.

Contact details:

• Asenati Tukela, SERI attorney: Asenati[at]seri-sa.org / 066 473 5182.
• Nomzamo Zondo, SERI executive director: Nomzamo[at]seri-sa.org / 071 301 9676.
• Thato Masiangoako, SERI researcher: Thato[at]seri-sa.org / 082 590 8973.

• Download the press statement here.

“Kubomvu!” is the warning that a lookout would sound on the arrival of police at one or other of the homes that had the misfortune of being subjected to frequent warrantless police searches. To the apartheid state, the oppressed majority had no privacy to be protected and no dignity to be respected.

- Madlanga J, 2013

On Friday, 25 July 2025, City of Johannesburg Mayor Dada Morero, together with the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department, the South African Police Service, the Department of Home Affairs, and the Red Ants, conducted a raid at the Ginger Park informal settlement in Sandton, where some residents have reportedly lived for the past eight years. SERI condemns this raid as the latest in a long history of raids by the City to target and harass poor people to demonstrate strong, tough-on-crime governance. SERI notes that while crime is a serious concern that must be treated with urgency, we stand against the wholesale criminalisation of informal settlements and the people who live in them, especially when carried out for political point‑scoring.

According to the Mayor, the raid formed part of a phased process to remove the settlement, which in turn is influenced by an informal settlement eradication mind-set that went out of policy favour years ago. The plan involves removing unoccupied shacks first, then profiling South African nationals for alternative accommodation and finally “dealing with” undocumented migrants. The removal or demolition of any structure that constitutes someone's home, whether occupied or not, can only be done upon the authority of a valid court order obtained after considering the life circumstances of those to be affected.

In an interview with SABC News, the Mayor made reference to a court order, the contents of which are not explained. The execution of a court-ordered eviction must be supervised by the sheriff of the court, who must be present during such eviction and may only be assisted by individuals authorised by the court. It appears that there was no sheriff present at the raid on Ginger Park, which is required in terms of Section 4(11) of the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act of 1998. This would make the validity of the court orders referred to by the Mayor questionable.

In the same interview with the SABC, the Mayor stated that “the central objective is to get rid of informal settlements.” In response to a question about whether the City would continue with raids before alternative accommodation for affected informal settlement residents would be secured, the Mayor said,

“No, we will continue to do the raids. We must see them. […] The thing we are doing here is to just tell the residents [of Johannesburg] we are acting. We are dealing with lawlessness in Johannesburg. We are enforcing the law – by-law enforcement, crime prevention. That is basically what we are doing and we are going to do it and we are not going to shy away. All other issues that we may not have prepared on time will find us on the way.”

Both the events at Ginger Park and the Mayor’s rationale are problematic for a number of reasons, including disjuncture with national policy, an apparent lack of awareness about why informal settlements exist in the first place and the unconstitutionality of warrantless raids.

The Mayor’s comments illustrate a disconnection with national human settlements policy. Since 2009, the Upgrading of Informal Settlements Programme (UISP) has rightfully and gradually shifted away from informal settlement eradication in favour of in situ upgrading. This shift took years of advocacy, litigation and civil society pressure to achieve. Many people lost their homes in the process. Now, the Mayor espouses eradication. What happened in Ginger Park demonstrates an approach that fails to understand the nature and causes of the housing crisis, of which informal settlements are a symptom.

Informal settlement is the outcome of several factors for which landless people bear an unjust burden. Informal settlements are, in part, a product of South Africa’s long history of land dispossession under colonialism and later apartheid. Although the middle class and propertied public tire of reference to this cause, history has cast a long shadow for the majority of people who live in South Africa without secure land tenure, let alone access to property. Secondly, South Africa is not insulated from global urbanisation trends. The United Nations estimated that in 2018, it was estimated that 1 billion people live in informal settlements. The International Budget Partnership (IBP) estimates that in South Africa, more than 5 million people live in informal settlements. In 2023, 68% of the South African population lived in urban areas, however, it is projected to increase to 70% by 2030 and 80% by 2050. Finally, informal settlements are also partly the result of a chronic lack of affordable, well-located housing in urban areas, itself a factor of insufficient subsidised and private housing delivery.  Analysis by Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group shows that people earning the national minimum wage (R28,79 per hour) spend between 34-55% on transport each month. Informal settlements are home to people who resort to unlawful occupation often because they are unable to access affordable housing options in areas that offer proximity to essential services, employment opportunities, and social amenities. The concept of informal settlement eradication is therefore not only unrealistic, but it also fails to comprehend root causes.

In 2021, the Constitutional Court found that a series of unlawful raids under then-Mayor Herman Mashaba were unconstitutional and egregious, showing no consideration for the residents’ rights to privacy and dignity. The court held that these raids “were conducted for an ulterior purpose, which is an abuse of power indicating wanton and calculated disregard of the law by the City and a predacious, mechanical scheme to terrorise and forcibly evict suspected unlawful occupiers, under the guise of restoring public order.” The Mayor’s comments about the purpose of the raid at Ginger Park echo the sentiments and actions addressed by the Constitutional Court in 2021. Furthermore, the use of raids and forced removals were instrumental in implementing the apartheid vision, resulting in a legacy of spatial inequality across the country, but especially in South Africa’s cities.

Our opening quote by Justice Madlanga refers to a 2013 case before the Constitutional Court about the use of state machinery against black people under apartheid continuing against the poor and marginalised in South Africa today. It is shameful that our municipality continues to do so in 2025.

SERI cautions the City against repeating past violations in service to its wealthy and propertied residents and for political gain. We affirm that the poor must be treated with dignity and afforded the privacy to which everyone is entitled. We urge the City to refrain from using raids to target impoverished people and call upon it, instead, to use intelligence-led and evidence-based policing and to develop and, more significantly, implement a housing strategy that prioritises the needs and rights of its vulnerable residents, including its informal settlement residents who are as much a part of the City as anyone else.

Contact details:

• Nkosinathi Sithole, SERI Director of Litigation: Nkosinathi[at]seri-sa.org / 082 589 7473.
• Lauren Royston, SERI Director of Research and Advocacy: Lauren[at]seri-sa.org.

• Download the press statement here.

On 17 July Operation Dudula and allied groups marched to the SERI offices in Braamfontein. Earlier, on Tuesday, 8 July 2025, Operation Dudula served SERI with an official notice of their intent to march to SERI’s offices, the South African Human Rights Commission and the Helen Suzman Foundation. SERI acknowledged receipt of this notice and informed the leadership of Operation Dudula that they would be received by a delegation of SERI’s leadership. We made this decision on the basis that everyone has the constitutional right to protest. SERI also understands that concerns about poverty, unemployment and lack of service delivery are everyone’s. We part ways with Operation Dudula however, on root causes and action to be taken. Our partner organisation, Abahlali baseMjondolo recognises that people are angry but that this anger is misdirected at migrants. After yesterday, SERI remains opposed to the unlawful and violent approach of Operation Dudula.

SERI stood ready to accept the memorandum from Operation Dudula yesterday. We were joined by the four organisations who litigated against Operation Dudula as they felt that Operation Dudula should address their complaints directly to them. Abahlali baseMjondolo, South Africa’s foremost social movement and longstanding partner of SERI was at the front of this message yesterday. Also joining us in solidarity were at least ten other civil society organisations which, upon learning of Operation Dudula’s march to SERI, made the decision to join us in accepting the memorandum. 

In the end, the Operation Dudula leadership did not hand over the memorandum and proceeded with their march to the South African Human Rights Commission, having forcibly attempted to get inside the building where SERI rents offices, along with many other tenants. Their violent and intimidatory behaviour included threats of violence to people in the crowd, the pepper spraying of an individual and the throwing of stones and bottles, requiring police to intervene. The people who came to receive the memorandum with SERI and those who came to support exercised extreme discipline. 

We understand that this protest emanates from the Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia and Others v Operation Dudula and Others matter which was heard by the High Court in Johannesburg on 10 and 11 June 2025. This case, brought on behalf of Kopanang Africa Against Xenophobia (KAAX), the South African Informal Traders Forum (SAITF), the Inner City Federation (ICF) and Abahlali BaseMjondolo, challenges the xenophobic and racist speech and conduct of Operation Dudula and certain of its office-bearers. The applicants are also seeking relief from relevant organs of state for failing to discharge their duties concerning xenophobia and Operation Dudula’s unlawful conduct. Judgment in this matter has been reserved. 

This litigation was launched in May 2023 and Operation Dudula elected to not participate in the case. The case seeks accountability for the unlawful conduct by members of Operation Dudula and other groups which has involved harassment and intimidation of people assumed to be migrants by demanding to verify their identification documents and immigration status in violation of section 41 of the Immigration Act, forcing businesses to close, preventing informal traders from operating, evicting people from their homes without a court order, wearing uniforms that resemble those of the police or the military, denying people access to health care and education by removing students and teachers from schools based on nationality – all this with no authority and in deliberate violation of the rights of people.

SERI affirms the constitutional right to protest as a means of expressing dissent and participating in South Africa’s democracy. It is on this basis that SERI agreed to receive grievances from Operation Dudula and communicated our openness to further engagement, provided that it was within the confines of the law and that the rights of all people are respected. However, it is now apparent that it was never Operation Dudula’s intention to engage meaningfully.

From our work, we know that it is getting harder and harder for the majority of the country to survive in this challenging socio-economic context where jobs are few and the cost of living continues to rise. Most people understand that while the government has made some advances since 1994, the recent years have been blemished by corruption, poor delivery and a governance crisis. It is now common cause that the state is failing its people and that much remains to be done. This is contested terrain. The misguided sentiment that migrants are to blame is taking hold in our communities, and it is conveniently and dangerously being weaponised by political leaders, in part, to distract people from the root causes of these challenges to score cheap political points at the risk of human life. Our past is replete with examples of extreme violence spurred by inflammatory rhetoric.  

While it is crucial that all of us, especially those most affected by poverty and inequality, be given space to share experiences, raise legitimate concerns and to advocate for our rights, it is equally important that those issues are not weaponised to justify breaking the law and violating the rights of any group of people. Based on our Constitution and the rule of law, our society, founded on the values of ubuntu, must insist on making a clear distinction between legitimate concerns and the incitement of violence.

SERI is emboldened by the support demonstrated by the many civil society organisations that stood with us yesterday. Their presence sent a clear message against xenophobia and dispelled the notion that poor black South African’s broadly support anti-migrant violence and xenophobia. We thank every organisation and individual who came out in defence of human rights, equality and dignity for all who live in South Africa.

SERI executive director, Nomzamo Zondo states “SERI has been providing litigation, research and advocacy support to activists, communities and movements for over 15 years and we have come to expect dissent. Nonetheless, we are grateful that the march organised by Operation Dudula became an opportunity for those who value SERI to communicate that alongside Operation Dudula's complaint.”

Contact details:

• Nomzamo Zondo, SERI executive director: Nomzamo[at]seri-sa.org / 071 301 9676.
• Edward Molopi, SERI senior communications and advocacy officer: Edward[at]seri-sa.org / 082 590 9638

>> Download the statement here. 

The Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI) Law Clinic wishes to fill up to two vacancies for candidate attorneys (CAs). 

These vacancies will arise on or after 1 January 2026. 

The SERI Law Clinic has a first-rate human rights practice, which encompasses constitutional and administrative law, criminal defence, defamation, labour law, property law, contract law (insofar as it involves consumer protection) and actions against the police and other delictual claims. SERI concentrates its work in South Africa’s townships, informal settlements and other poor and marginalised communities. SERI’s practitioners appear regularly at all levels of the court system, up to and including the Constitutional Court. SERI has an enviable track record in obtaining and enforcing ground-breaking judgments. You can find out more about SERI on www.seri-sa.org 

SERI is authorised by the Legal Practice Council to accept and train CAs. CAs are recruited for a fixed term of two years, leading to qualification and admission as an attorney. These posts carry salaries in the region of R305 000. 00 per annum. 

The requirements for the positions are as follows - 

Essential 

• LLB Degree.
• Interest in and, some prior engagement with, human rights law or litigation.

Desirable 

• Interest in, and experience of, research and publication.
• Fluency in any of South Africa’s indigenous languages.
• Be prepared to work outside the ordinary working hours and with previously disadvantaged communities.

SERI wishes to contribute to the development of a new generation of human rights lawyers at the national and international level. Accordingly, the positions carry with them significant opportunities for travel and continuing professional training and development. 

If you are interested, please send a CV, academic transcript and covering letter to Princess Nkuna at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. In your letter, provide a detailed explanation of why you are interested in working for SERI, and what qualities and experience you would bring to the post. 

Generalised covering letters, which do not engage with SERI’s activities and purpose, will not be considered. 

The closing date for applications is Thursday, 31 July 2025. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and will be expected to make themselves available for interview in August or September 2025. 

>> Download the advert here.