Latest news with #Burgersfort
News24
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- News24
My identikit sketches for the cops help survivors of crime to heal
'It's not the artistic life he imagined but Nicholas Marobane's sketches for the police have helped the 39-year-old to find purpose and meaning. 'I grew up in Burgersfort, Limpopo, and I've always loved to draw. In primary school I divided my books in half and the one half was just drawings. Drawings, drawings and drawings. I gave my parents a hard time. They couldn't understand why this child just wanted to draw. I used everything I could get my hands on to draw – crayons, pens, pencils, it really didn't matter to me. Drawing was what I wanted to do with my life. READ MORE | Cuff me, constable! YOU meets the hottie cop who made the internet blush People from Burgersfort don't really go and study after school but I wanted to see if I could do something more with my art after all these years of my parents and teachers telling me to focus on my schoolwork and draw less. I submitted a portfolio of my work to the University of Tshwane in Pretoria and was accepted to study fine art. It was exciting to go to the big city after Burgersfort and being away from home was quite an experience. I got my degree at 24 but I had to face a few harsh realities. I didn't realise there are so few people who care about art. It's actually sad that so many young people finish studying and start looking for work with bright eyes and then battle so much. I just went back to Limpopo. What was I supposed to do? There was a position open as a clerk at the Lyndenburg SAPS and I applied because I needed a job. I got the job and a while later the station commander told me I should try to get a foot in the door at the forensic department. They asked me do a course on facial recognition software. Then a position opened up in the forensic department in Polokwane as a sketcher, compiling pictures of suspects with the help of facial recognition software. I applied and here I am now – an artist in the police. My job isn't easy. I'm privileged to be able to draw for a living but I work with people who've been through terrible trauma. I sit with them and I have to work gently. When I interview a victim, I try to make them feel comfortable. I tell a story or something, as if I'm sharing their experience. I find it helps. READ MORE | THIS LIFE | I'm a magician and the looks on kids' faces make it so fulfilling When I've refreshed their memory and a sketch is finished, there's a kind of relief. The victims are happier when we're done. It sometimes feels like I'm applying a form of trauma therapy. We have a connection. I focus on eyes in my sketches. If the eyes don't have emotion, it's not a good likeness. I can try to capture every detail of the person – their scars, their hairstyle, their wrinkles – but if the eyes don't have emotion, it just looks like a caricature. I bring murderers and rapists to life. Honestly, it bothers me. I'm very, very fortunate to have the job I have. Everyone else in the forensic department struggles more than I do. They literally have to go and photograph bodies. In my art there are a lot of themes of chains. We're all tied down by something. In this country – corruption, poverty, injustice. I see that it gnaws at my colleagues as well. When I close my eyes, I see an exhibition in which I can tell all of their stories. My personal art is a little more abstract compared to my sketches for the police. I break away from symmetrical precision. I try to sketch people who could represent anyone. Work that people can buy, hang in their homes, and it represents something of right and justice. That's what I'm trying to do with my shop in town, EthosArt. I may be a policeman, but I'm an artist at heart. Art is life and if we let the arts die, then we die. Our ubuntu dies. If we stop seeing humanity in the world, humanity is forgotten. Doing nothing with my talent would make me feel like I'm contributing to everything that's being swept under the rug. I'm happy. I'm privileged. I was put on this Earth to do something with my talent and I think I'm doing it. This life is special. This life is sad, it's unfair, but it's the life we've been given. We have to appreciate every moment of it.'
News24
22-05-2025
- Health
- News24
Dilokong Hospital leaves mom traumatised after baby falls head first during birth
A woman in labor deserves compassion and support, yet a lack of both marked Karabo's birth experience. It was a nightmare for then heavily pregnant Karabo Magabe (30) whose baby fell head-first onto the hospital floor during birth, she says nurses in Dilokong hospital must take responsibility for their negligent treatment. During our visit to her home, she cradled her newborn while breastfeeding. In that tender moment, which should have filled her with joy and pride, she couldn't shake the memory of how close she came to losing her during childbirth. when she speaks of the birth of her daughter, she recalls the indignity and humiliation of giving birth in the hospital passage in full view of patients. The terror of almost losing her child will be with her forever. When Karabo started feeling labour pains on Thursday 8 May, her mother rushed her Dilokong hospital outside Burgersfort, Limpopo. Karabo, traveled from Praktiseer segorong section, about half an hour away from the hospital. When she got to the hospital, she was in labour pains, bleeding and ready to give birth. Her weight and vitals were taken and she was admitted to the maternity ward. When she started to cry for help, her pleas were unanswered. The nurses at the hospital told her it was false labour pains. she was then left alone unattended. 'I was in deep pain and bleeding as my water broke and I shouted for help telling the nurses that the baby is about to be born.' 'A rude nurse started to shout and insult me, she ordered me to stand up and follow her so she can help me deliver. My little baby came out while I was in the hospital passage following her,' Karabo says. 'She fell on her head first between my legs on the hospital floor in full view of nurses and other patients. I could see the umbilical cord attached to my baby girl dangling. My child sustained serious injuries on the face, her left eye was left with bruises, she started crying.' Read more | Bullied teen tells mom if perpetrators are not arrested she'll kill herself Her daughter was lucky to survive and be alive. 'We were admitted in unbearable inhumane conditions, sharing food with cats all over the hospital ward.' 'After the incident, my newborn shivers during the night and swallows as if she is eating something. I can't forget how I was shouted at on that fateful day. The nurse then asked me, 'What, are you trying to kill your own child?' and said, 'Look now.'' 'They examined my child and told me to take her home'. 'Another nurse told me she is healthy.' 'When I think of that hospital my heart starts to bleed from the sad memories and the horror and pain I endured,' she says. Karabo says, she never missed a single maternity appointment until her day of delivery. It was also not the first time she was giving birth. Her first born child is five years old. When pressed for comment, Limpopo department of health spokesperson, Neil Shikwambane said 'We are aware of the issue and the hospital management is busy with an inquiry on the matter to establish all the facts so that proper and an informed action can be taken'. Shikwambane promised 'We will be able to comment on the issue extensively once we have clear outcomes of the enquiry'.
Mail & Guardian
20-05-2025
- Business
- Mail & Guardian
Limpopo mining-affected communities call for community-led, socially-owned renewable energy model
A new case study proposes that, as part of the country's energy transition, mining-affected communities, like those in Sekhukhune, set up solar farms through cooperatives to generate electricity for their own use. The mining region of This is the argument of 'The mining houses in that area are investing in Pedro was speaking at a recent webinar where the Sekhukhune Combined Mining-Affected Communities — a grassroots movement representing communities in Burgersfort — together with consultancy firm Ahinasa and the According to the civil society organisations, the report is 'both a call to action and a blueprint for change', challenging extractive energy models and 'foregrounding the role of social ownership in ensuring a just, inclusive and equitable energy future'. It proposes that, as part of the country's energy transition, mining-affected communities, like those in Sekhukhune, set up solar farms through cooperatives to generate electricity for their own use. Any surplus energy could be sold to the mines or the national grid, with the profits ploughed directly into community-led initiatives such as schools, healthcare facilities and small businesses. 'Too often, decisions are made about our future without our input,' said Katlego Malesa, the spokesperson for the Sekhukhune Combined Mining-Affected Communities. 'This report is proof that we have the knowledge, the vision and the will to lead our own transition. What we need now is investment, policy support and real accountability.' The groups noted that, for decades, mining-affected communities in regions like Burgersfort, within the mineral-rich Bushveld Complex, have suffered the ill-effects of the country's mining and mineral energy economy. They have faced land dispossession, environmental degradation, pollution and widespread socio-economic exclusion, 'often without seeing any meaningful benefit from the wealth extracted around them'. Burgersfort hosts an estimated 41 chrome and platinum mines, including some that have been placed in 'care and maintenance' for a lengthy period 'with devastating consequences for the local economy', the report said. Despite provisions in the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act obligating mining companies to contribute to local development through social and labour plans, compliance has been minimal, according to the groups. 'Community members continue to endure human rights violations and have limited access to basic services, job opportunities or infrastructure.' Pedro concurred. 'Their [mining companies'] social and labour plans were supposed to uplift communities but too often these are filled with empty promises and not significant enough investment in the community for real economic development. 'Now that the mines are investing in renewable energy for their own operations and communities are still relying on expensive unreliable electricity — if they have access at all — what are we going to do about it? This isn't just unfair, but unsustainable.' Pedro emphasised that the country's energy transition can't merely be for the benefit of corporations. 'If mines can spend millions in renewables for themselves, why can't they invest in community-owned energy and community infrastructure projects that can secure and result in sustainable economic development for the whole community?' The civil society groups noted that, with the closure of coal mines now underway and global demand rising for transition minerals, mining-affected communities face yet another wave of uncertainty and possible exclusion. 'Without intentional, community-led planning, the risk of an unjust transition will simply perpetuate the exploitation and neglect of mining-affected communities — this time under the banner of 'going green',' they said. The case study, they said, presents a viable alternative — a community-led, socially-owned renewable energy model that 'restores agency to communities by enabling them to shape and benefit directly from their local energy systems'. It explores the viability of solar mini-farms and other decentralised energy solutions as catalysts for economic regeneration, energy access, skills development and long-term community resilience. The report also outlines the role of Eskom and other public institutions in enabling and supporting this shift, aligning with the broader vision of a 'green new Eskom' that is accountable, decentralised and committed to public benefit. The report's key recommendations include public financing and enabling legislation to support socially owned renewable energy projects in mining-affected communities. There must be mandatory investments by mining companies into community-led transition projects, as part of their social development obligations under the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act as well as strengthened regulatory frameworks and transparent mechanisms to support procedural and distributive justice. Other recommendations are for capacity-building, training and feasibility studies to ensure local ownership and long-term sustainability as well as the recognition of community-defined energy solutions within national just transition frameworks and climate policy. The findings affirm what communities have long stated — a just transition must be just, said Robert Krause, researcher and acting head of programme: environmental justice at the Centre for Applied Legal Studies. 'It must include redistribution of power and resources and repair the historical harms caused by a mining economy rooted in colonialism and apartheid. It must centre those who have been excluded, dispossessed and harmed and give them a meaningful say in shaping South Africa's energy future,' he said. Socially-owned renewable energy has entered into mainstream public discussions, the report said. 'However, similar to the concept of just transition, its meaning and implementation model is still highly contested … The specific implications for mining-affected communities have yet to be thoroughly investigated.' These communities face unique challenges and opportunities in the context of a just transition and socially-owned renewable energy. 'Notably, mining companies have begun investing in renewable energy both to power their operations and to diversify their revenue. 'At the same time, they are legally obligated to support community economic development, particularly in light of widespread coalmine closures and the growing demand for transition minerals used in renewable energy technologies. Early experiences suggest that this new wave of mining is following the same extractive patterns as before.' The report concluded that socially-owned renewable energy is not only a technically and economically viable alternative but a necessary counter-narrative to the dominant private sector-led model. 'It offers a compelling case for public sector leadership, under a democratised and adequately resourced Eskom, and calls for coherent policy, legal and financial frameworks that support community- and worker-led renewable energy projects.' Through the Sekhukhune Combined Mining-Affected Communities' efforts, the report demonstrates how grassroots mobilisation, strategic alliances and evidence-based advocacy can 'coalesce into a campaign with transformative potential'. 'It highlights the untapped opportunity to mobilise community savings mechanisms like stokvels, the underutilised obligations of mining companies to support local development and the power of education and organising in forging a shared vision,' it said. 'The success of this initiative — and others like it — will depend on deepening community participation, securing the necessary financial and technical support and embedding this work within broader struggles for climate justice, energy democracy and economic resilience.' The Sekhukhune case study offered a replicable and adaptable participatory model for other mining-affected communities across South Africa 'to take forward their own visions of social ownership in the energy transition'.
