Hundreds of people face eviction from abandoned Sibanye-Stillwater mining village

A general view of the Waterpan Village, a former mining compound near Westonaria.

• About 80 families moved into abandoned houses in Waterpan Village near Westonaria after Sibanye-Stillwater’s Cooke mining operations closed between 2016 and 2017.
• A mediation process is underway, but Sibanye has cut electricity to the village, citing safety concerns, and pressed ahead with issuing eviction notices.
• A community trust argues that the residents have rights of occupation and wants the company to transfer usable infrastructure to the community.
• The mine says it cannot commit to development projects beyond its agreed Social and Labour Plan.

Busisiwe Makhubo fears for her and her child’s future amid threats of being evicted from the house they have been living in for seven years in Waterpan Village, near Westonaria on Johannesburg’s West Rand.

Makhubo, 37, moved into the property with her husband after he was retrenched from Sibanye-Stillwater Cooke 3, when the mining operation closed.

The Waterpan Village, which had around 80 homes for mine managers, was abandoned by Sibanye-Stillwater after Cooke 1, 2, and 3 closed in 2017. Cooke 4 underground operation had closed in 2016. Many people, like Makhubo and her family, and others from surrounding areas, moved into the abandoned homes

“These are our homes. Without it, we have nowhere to go,” Makhubo told GroundUp. “It is really stressful and traumatising getting these eviction notices. I ask myself, where will I go if they kick us out? … You can’t just chase people out like they are dogs. We fought for this community. We fought for these houses when they wanted to demolish them. We fought against the zama zamas in this area and to keep the community safe.”

Busisiwe Makhubo with her three-year-old daughter, Snethembakulile, and Asimbonge Mafologele, a neighbours child, her daughters playmate.

Mvezi “Roy” Thusi, 65, who has been living in one of the abandoned houses since 2019 said he and his family had spent money on fixing things and improving the house. “If they kick me out, I have nowhere to go. Where will I go? It will be under the tree, under the bridge. I will be on the streets,” he said.

But Sibanye-Stillwater, and its subsidiary Rand Uranium, which owns the village and the properties, says it is their property and they have a right to evict illegal occupiers.

“Our understanding is that all the occupants are illegal occupiers. Some of the occupants are believed to have worked for the Ezulwini Mining Company (Cooke 4) which was placed on care and maintenance in 2016 and operations suspended. The challenge is that we haven’t been able to identify all the occupants,” said James Wellsted, spokesperson for Sibanye.

Eviction notices were first issued to residents of the Waterpan Village in March this year, and the power to the village was cut off shortly after that.

Residents again received eviction notices in June. But despite that, they are continuing to live in the village without electricity.

Makhubo said it was difficult raising her four-year-old daughter in the middle of winter without any electricity. “It is really difficult to live here. We have to cook with an open fire or paraffin. Even in winter, you have to go outside to cook or warm water to clean ourselves. Our fridges have been off, so we eat a lot of tinned food,” she said.

A resident of Waterpan Village cooks outside using salvaged firewood after electricity was cut off in the area in March.

Wonder Modise, chairperson of the West End Mining and Rehabilitation (WERM) Trust, who has been negotiating with Sibanye about old and abandoned mining infrastructure in the area, argues that the community had rights to the village and homes after Sibanye left them abandoned and neglected for years.

In a memorandum presented to Sibanye in June, the WERM Trust objected to Sibanye’s threat to evict long-standing residents, the destruction of “repurposable” infrastructure in the area, and what it sees as a disregard for post-mining community development obligations.

“The affected communities in Cooke 2, Cooke 3 and Waterpan have lawfully occupied vacant residential units and structures for over seven years. These units, previously left neglected by Sibanye, were never transferred to the state or community as earlier implied,” the memo reads.

From left, Oupa Lekoala, resident of Waterpan and member of the West End Mining and Rehabilitation (WERM) Trust, with Wonder Modise, chairperson of WERM.

The Trust said Sibanye has issued eviction notices to residents, initiated property transfers to private parties, and demolished community infrastructure, including training centres and engineering facilities.

Modise accuses the mine of deliberately abandoning the houses “so that they can say it is unsafe and then they can demolish it all”.

He said the Trust was hoping for a mediation process to be completed before eviction notices were served. He said they want Sibanye to preserve and transfer usable infrastructure to the community.

Children from the Waterpan Village playing in the streets of the former mining compound near Westonaria.

Sibanye spokesperson James Wellsted said the land reform and rural development department had appointed a mediator in January 2025, but his mandate expired. A new mediator is still to be appointed to identify and investigate the personal circumstances of each of the occupiers and resolve the matter. In the meantime, Sibanye is pressing ahead with eviction notices, but “proceedings haven’t been launched with the courts”, he said.

“The company is not obliged to supply electricity to properties which have been occupied, but electricity supply to the village was curtailed mainly due to safety concerns caused by damaged and exposed power lines which were vandalised or damaged when illegal electrical connections were made,” he said.

Wellsted said Sibanye could not commit to any infrastructure and development projects beyond its agreed Social and Labour Plan.

“Any facilities that may have been demolished were most likely unstable and posed a safety risk. All demolitions were approved and followed due process,” he said.

Sibusiso Khumalo from the West End Mining and Rehabilitation Trust walking over the rubble of a home that was demolished at the Waterpan Village.

A resident of an occupied house at Waterpan Village, a former mining compound near Westonaria putting a new coat of paint on the place he calls home.

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