COSATU marches against unfair treatment of farm workers

By Rhodé Marshall
21 September 2007

The Congress of South African Trade Unions will march on Saturday to hand over a memorandum to highlight concerns of poor farm workers.

“We came across a number of cases that were reported to the police. Mainly the assault, the killing of farm workers by lions and the farm workers abuse evictions and matters that relate to the labour relation issues,” says COSATU Provincial Secretary Solly Phetoe.

The memorandum will be handed over to the Department of Land and Agriculture, Safety and Security and Labour.

Farm workers participating in the march will ask that all cases which have been reported to the police including the murder of former member of the South African Communist Party Chris Hani be reopened.

“We will also include a demand of the arrest of the farmer whose ten lions mutilated a young boy,” says Phetoe.

The march will start at 10am from the crossing taxi rank to the Mafikeng police station, in the North West province.