Marashea on the mines: Economic, social and criminal networks on the South African gold fields, 1947-1999

Journal of Southern African Studies

Volumn 26, Issue 1, 2000, Pages 79-103

  Kynoch, Gary ^a  

^a DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY   (Canada)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ETHNIC MINORITY; GOLD MINE; IMMIGRANT POPULATION; MIGRANT WORKER;

SOUTH AFRICA;

EID: 0034113324     PISSN: 03057070     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/030570700108397     Document Type: Article

References (130)

1. Marashea is the term for the collective, Lerashea is a single member of the group and Borashea is the phenomenon of Marashea, which might be translated as 'Russianism'.
2. Basotho migrants organized themselves into groups for the purpose of self-protection and socialization on the mines and in the locations prior to the Second World War. They were known as Liakhela. By the mid-1940s, some of these groups had adopted the name Marashea or Russians as they had heard that the Russians were a fierce and strong people who had defeated their enemies in the recent war.
3. There is some disagreement amongst informants about whether Xhosa or Hlubi dominated groups which followed Marashea practices were indeed Marashea. I know of two groups that fall into this category - a 1950s group comprised primarily of Hlubi in Soweto and a Xhosa-led group in the 1970s Free State. In at least one instance, a non-Mosotho was the leader of Marashea. Mokhemele, also known as Kimberly, the leader of a Free State faction of Marashea in the 1970s, was either Hlubi from Matatiele, or from mixed Basotho/Xhosa parentage Footnote 3 continued and born in Herschel in the Free State. However, respondents unanimously report that members whose first language was not Sesotho were required to be proficient in Sesotho.
4. The only exception I have uncovered is a group that worked on the railways in Bloemfontein in the 1950s. Respondents stated that this was a small group that was not sustained into the 1960s.
5. C. van Onselen, Studies in the Social and Economic History of the Witwatersrand 1886-1914, Volume 2 - New Nineveh (London, 1982), pp. 181-182.
6. Central Archives Depot (CAD), Pretoria, JUS 144 file 3/778/12, Chief Commissioner of Police, Pretoria, to the Secretary of Justice, 3 January 1913.
7. J. Guy and M. Thabane, 'The Ma-Rashea: A Participant's Perspective', in B. Bozzoli (ed), Class, Community and Conflict (Johannesburg, 1987), p. 442.
8. Free State Archives (FSA), Bloemfontein, CO 620 file 2385/1, Native Disturbances, InterTribal Mxosas and Basutos on Koffiefontein Mine, 1910.
9. K. Breckenridge, 'Migrancy, Crime and Faction Fighting: the Role of the Isitshozi in the Development of Ethnic Organisations in the Compounds', Journal of Southern African Studies, 16, 2 (1990), p. 63.
10. Interview, KL, Lesotho, July 1998. See also Guy and Thabane, 'The Ma-Rashea' where Rantoa also remembers clashes with the Mpondo as contributing to the formation of the Russians.
11. D. Coplan, In the Time of Cannibals: The Word Music of South Africa's Basotho Migrants (Chicago, 1994), p. 187.
12. CAD, NTS 4179, file 33/313, Native Commissioner, Vereeniging, to the Director of Native Labour, Johannesburg, 6 December 1946; CAD, NTS 7691 file 375/332, Chart of Native Unrest 1946-1947; CAD, NTS 7689 file 325/332, Director of Native Labour, Johannesburg, to the Secretary of Native Affairs, 6 May 1949, Enclosure - Statement by Joel Molapo, clerk in the office of the Agent for the High Commission Territories, 26 April 1949.
13. P. Bonner, 'The Russians on the Reef 1947-1957: Urbanisation, Gang Warfare and Ethnic Mobilisation', in P. Bonner, P. Delius and D. Posel (eds), Apartheid's Genesis, 1935-1962 (Johannesburg, 1993), p. 181.
14. Coplan, In the Time of Cannibals, p. 189.
15. Bonner, 'Russians on the Reef, p. 169.
16. Between 1946 and 1948, the number of Basotho mineworkers on the Rand dropped considerably from 55,136 to 26,672 while the numbers of Basotho working in secondary industry had increased significantly by 1946 to 23,578 and continued to escalate thereafter. Ibid., pp. 176, 173.
17. Most respondents who were active on the Rand during the 1950s estimate that the majority of Russians in their groups were employed as mineworkers. Arrest reports, which list the addresses and occupations of Russians, as well as observations made by various police officers and township officials, indicate the same. See CAD, WRAD 352/1, 'Natives Arrested in Connection with Faction Fight in Phiri on Afternoon of 18th May, 1958'; CAD, NTS 7921 file 520/400 (12), Native Commissioner, Johannesburg, to the Director of Native Labour, 'Lawlessness Amongst Natives in Urban Areas and Urban Native Townships, 20 February 1951'; CAD, NTS 7722 file 145/333, Director of Native Labour, Johannesburg, to the Agent for the High Commission Territories, Johannesburg, 'Lawlessness and Unrest in the Pimville Location, 5 June 1950'; CAD, SAP 367 file 15/660/44 vol. 2, Deputy Commissioner SAP, Witwatersrand, to the Commissioner SAP, Pretoria, 9 September 1956; CAD NTS 7674 file 90/332, Native Commissioner, Johannesburg, to the Director of Native Labour, Johannesburg, 13 June 1952. See also The World, 25 October 1958 and the Golden City Post, 5 October 1960.
18. Most respondents who were active on the Rand during the 1950s estimate that the majority of Russians in their groups were employed as mineworkers. Arrest reports, which list the addresses and occupations of Russians, as well as observations made by various police officers and township officials, indicate the same. See CAD, WRAD 352/1, 'Natives Arrested in Connection with Faction Fight in Phiri on Afternoon of 18th May, 1958'; CAD, NTS 7921 file 520/400 (12), Native Commissioner, Johannesburg, to the Director of Native Labour, 'Lawlessness Amongst Natives in Urban Areas and Urban Native Townships, 20 February 1951'; CAD, NTS 7722 file 145/333, Director of Native Labour, Johannesburg, to the Agent for the High Commission Territories, Johannesburg, 'Lawlessness and Unrest in the Pimville Location, 5 June 1950'; CAD, SAP 367 file 15/660/44 vol. 2, Deputy Commissioner SAP, Witwatersrand, to the Commissioner SAP, Pretoria, 9 September 1956; CAD NTS 7674 file 90/332, Native Commissioner, Johannesburg, to the Director of Native Labour, Johannesburg, 13 June 1952. See also The World, 25 October 1958 and the Golden City Post, 5 October 1960.
19. M. Melamu, Children of the Twilight (Johannesburg, 1987), p. 139.
20. The World, 18 January 1965.
21. Golden City Post, 2 October 1960. See also The World, 18 August 1956, 25 October 1958, 18 January 1965.
22. Golden City Post, 2 October 1960. See also The World, 18 August 1956, 25 October 1958, 18 January 1965.
23. CAD, NTS 7722 file 145/333, Director of Native Labour to the Agent for the High Commission Territories, 5 June 1950.
24. The Employment Bureau of Africa (TEBA) archives, NRC files, A. 9, Pad 1, Director of Native Labour, Witwatersrand, to The General Manager, Native Recruiting Corporation, Ltd., 14 June 1952.
25. CAD, NTS 6490 file 125/313 S vol. 2, Deputy Commissioner SAP to the Office of the District Commandant, 26 September 1949.
26. Interview, PG, Soweto, 20 December 1998.
27. Golden City Post, 2 October 1960. It was common practice for Russian groups in the 1950s and 1960s to write letters to rival gangs for the purpose of formally establishing the time and venue for a battle.
28. D. Moodie, Going for Gold: Men, Mines and Migration (Berkeley, 1994), p. 198.
29. J.K. McNamara, 'Inter-Group Violence Among Black Employees on South African Gold Mines: 1974 to 1986', Industrial Relations Journal of South Africa, 9, 4 (1989), p. 29.
30. The real average wage of black mineworkers nearly tripled between 1974 and 1987. J. Steinberg with G. Seidman, Gold Mining's Labour Markets: Legacies of the Past, Challenges to the Present, Labour Studies Research Report 6, Sociology of Work Unit, University of the Witwatersrand (Johannesburg, 1995), p. 19.
31. Rand Daily Mail, 12 June 1956.
32. Interview, NT, Virginia, 29 October 1998.
33. Interview, PL, Lesotho, 23-24 May 1998. The Russians engaged in massive battles that often involved hundreds of participants in the Johannesburg townships during the 1950s. It is likely that such activities, occurring in close Footnote 31 continued proximity to white areas, prompted the police crackdown against the Russians. Free State Russians living in more isolated farming areas were not such a visible embarrassment to the state.
34. FSA, PNV 1/2 FS 1302/vol. 1/26, District Commander, Welkom, to the Deputy Commissioner SAP, Bloemfontein, 16 January 1957. Numerous other accounts of Marashea activities appear in these files (also PNV 1/3), primarily reports on Marashea-related violence either between rival factions or with other ethnic groups.
35. The World, 29 March and 16 August 1958.
36. Goldstone Commission, 'Report of the Committee of Inquiry into the Violence During November 1991 at the President Steyn Gold Mine, Welkom', 1992, p. 19.
37. Interview, BM, Virginia, 24 October 1998.
38. Interview, PL. For Russian recruiting of miners see, CAD, SAP 602 file 115/15/60, Commanding Officer, Kroonstad, to the Commissioner SAP, Pretoria, 7 March 1961.
39. Interview, TS, Soweto, 22 December 1998.
40. Interview, GK, Lesotho, June 1998.
41. Interview, CN, Klerksdorp, 23 October 1998.
42. TEB A, NRC files, A.9, Pad 1, Inspector, Native Recruiting Corporation Ltd., to the Chief Inspector, 13 November 1951.
43. Interview, KK, Lesotho, 8 August 1998.
44. Interview, NN, Lesotho, 20 May 1998.
45. Tsilo was the subject of a massive search and was eventually caught some eighteen months after the shooting. He was acquitted at his trial, but numerous Marashea have admitted in interviews that he did shoot the officers.
46. Interview, SO, Lesotho, 13 September 1998.
47. Interview, WL, Lesotho, 8 August 1998.
48. CAD, KKD 2/1/8 file N1/9/2(7), 'Report on Disturbance Involving Tribal factions at No. 3 Compound, Vaal Reef West Division from 25th-27th December, 1972'.
49. Interview, R. de Boiz, Johannesburg, 16 June 1998.
50. TEBA Liaison Division (TEBALD), 'Lesotho "Russian" Gangs, March 1980', See also, A Human Resources Audit of Elandsrand Gold Mine Following the April 1979 Disturbances, Chamber of Mines of South Africa Research Organization, Project No. GH2CO6, Internal Report No. 5 (June 1979).
51. TEBALD, 'Notes on Visit to Elandsrand Mine, 11 January 1979'.
52. Interview, ML, Lesotho, 19 May 1998.
53. Interview, TL, Lesotho, 23 April 1998.
54. Interview, WL.
55. Interview, 'Me ID, Lesotho, 29 December 1998.
56. Interview, KL.
57. Interview, Harmony Mine, Virginia, 29 October 1998.
58. Conversation, PL. It was stressed, however, that no revenge was taken against the mineworkers because the dead Lerashea had acted on his own to rob them - it was not a group initiative.
59. CAD, SAP 664 file 15/21/62, Division Commissioner, Potchefstroom, to the Commissioner SAP, 18 June 1962; CAD, KKD 2/1/7 file 1/9/2, District Commandant, Klerksdorp, to the Deputy Commissioner SAP, 9 July 1960; J.K. McNamara, 'Black Worker Conflicts on South African Gold Mines, 1973-1982' (PhD thesis, University of the Witwatersrand, 1985), pp. 234-235; FSA, PNV 1/2, FS 1302/vol. 1/39, 'Report on a Faction Fight: President Steyn Gold Mine, 25 February 1962'.
60. CAD, SAP 664 file 15/21/62, Division Commissioner, Potchefstroom, to the Commissioner SAP, 18 June 1962; CAD, KKD 2/1/7 file 1/9/2, District Commandant, Klerksdorp, to the Deputy Commissioner SAP, 9 July 1960; J.K. McNamara, 'Black Worker Conflicts on South African Gold Mines, 1973-1982' (PhD thesis, University of the Witwatersrand, 1985), pp. 234-235; FSA, PNV 1/2, FS 1302/vol. 1/39, 'Report on a Faction Fight: President Steyn Gold Mine, 25 February 1962'.
61. Interview, WL.
62. Interview, MB, see also interview, LT, Lesotho, July 1998.
63. Interview, KI, Lesotho, 16 December 1998.
64. Interview, Harmony Mine, 29 October 1998.
65. Interview, KP, Lesotho, 9 August 1998.
66. Interview, HF, Lesotho, 8 May 1998.
67. Interview, SC, Lesotho, 22 April 1998.
68. Conversation, BM, Lesotho, May 1998.
69. CAD, SAP 480 file 15/16/50, Deputy Commissioner SAP, O.F.S. Division, to the Commissioner SAP, Pretoria, 29 May 1953; CAD, BAO 2881 file 36/5/980, District Commander, Welkom, to the Division Commander, Kroonstad, 25 February 1962; CAD, KKD 2/1/7 file 1/9/2, District Commandant, Klerksdorp, to the Deputy Commissioner SAP, Pretoria, 9 July 1960; CAD, SAP 664 file 15/21/62, Division Commissioner, Western Transvaal Division, to the Commissioner SAP, Pretoria, 18 June 1962; CAD, KKD 2/1/8 file N1/9/2(7); TEBALD, Disturbances Involving Basotho Mine Labour Effective from 26 December 1978, 25 March 1981; Interview, R. de Boiz.
70. McNamara, 'Black Worker Conflicts', pp. 108-121; CAD, K325 vol. 1, file 2, the Manager, Western Holdings Limited, to the General Manager, Chamber of Mines, 1 April 1975; CAD, K325 vol. 2, file 7, 'Comments on Strike and Disturbances by Basotho Employees at Vaal Reefs South Hostel from January 5th to 6th, 1975, by E. Schmid, Manager South Division, 15 January 1975'.
71. McNamara, 'Black Worker Conflicts', pp. 108-121; CAD, K325 vol. 1, file 2, the Manager, Western Holdings Limited, to the General Manager, Chamber of Mines, 1 April 1975; CAD, K325 vol. 2, file 7, 'Comments on Strike and Disturbances by Basotho Employees at Vaal Reefs South Hostel from January 5th to 6th, 1975, by E. Schmid, Manager South Division, 15 January 1975'.
72. McNamara, 'Black Worker Conflicts', pp. 108-121; CAD, K325 vol. 1, file 2, the Manager, Western Holdings Limited, to the General Manager, Chamber of Mines, 1 April 1975; CAD, K325 vol. 2, file 7, 'Comments on Strike and Disturbances by Basotho Employees at Vaal Reefs South Hostel from January 5th to 6th, 1975, by E. Schmid, Manager South Division, 15 January 1975'.
73. CAD, K325, vol. 2, file 7, 'Comments on Strike and Disturbances by Basotho Employees at Vaal Reefs South Hostel, from January 5th to 10th, 1975, 15 January 1975'. For a discussion of the deferred pay disputes see McNamara, 'Black Worker Conflicts', pp. 108-121.
74. CAD, K325, vol. 2, file 7, 'Comments on Strike and Disturbances by Basotho Employees at Vaal Reefs South Hostel, from January 5th to 10th, 1975, 15 January 1975'. For a discussion of the deferred pay disputes see McNamara, 'Black Worker Conflicts', pp. 108-121.
75. TEBALD, 'Disturbances Involving Basotho Mine Labour Effective from 26th December 1978', 25 March 1981.
76. Multiple interviews. It must be said, however, that many respondents either refused to discuss this question or were visibly uncomfortable doing so. The political climate in Lesotho is highly charged due to allegations of vote rigging in the May 1998 general election, which led to protests and eventually the South African invasion of Lesotho on 22 September 1998. These developments have no doubt affected the responses to questions dealing with domestic politics.
77. Interviews, NN and MB.
78. Elandsrand Gold Mining Company Note for the Record - 'Security Arrangements When the Riot Proceeded on 8 April 1979', 16 April 1979. This was the conclusion of the manager of the mine and apparently some TEBA officials despite the fact that an internal report noted that workers had 'widely held grievances' and were 'genuinely dissatisfied'. A Human Resources Audit of Elandsrand Gold Mine, p. 5.
79. Interview, KK.
80. At the four mines where polling took place, 100 per cent of the men polled had heard of the Russians; 77, 63, 59 and 57 per cent identified them as professional killers at Kinross, Winklehaak, Leslie and Bracken mines respectively. Interestingly, only a small minority (from 12-25 per cent) stated that miners feared the Russians. Survey Report of a Study of the Labour Situation on Certain Gold Mines Prepared for General Mining Corporation, Intercontinental Marketing Services Africa (March 1988), Tables 56 and 57.
81. Interview, MW, Lesotho, 25 April 1998.
82. Target workers went to the mines for the purpose of attaining sufficient funds to buy specific goods over the duration of one or two contracts, not necessarily to take up a career as miners.
83. Interview, R. de Boiz.
84. Interview, TB, Lesotho, 6 September 1998.
85. Interview, WL.
86. Goldstone Commission Report, pp. 13, 16, 19.
87. Interview, RC, Welkom, 20 May 1999.
88. Interview, R. de Boiz.
89. Interview, KL.
90. Interview, MB, Lesotho, July 1998.
91. Interview, Inspector Dan de Kock, Potchefstroom, 7 June 1999.
92. Indunas were men appointed and empowered by mine management to keep order in the hostels in return for higher wages and other benefits. Each 'tribal group' was represented by their Indunas, who were typically older, more conservative men.
93. Anecdotal evidence from mine employees indicates that Basotho occupied the majority of such positions on Harmony. Moodie attributes Basotho dominance of senior positions on Free State mines to the 1963 legislation which forbade Basotho from working in South Africa except on the mines and as farm labourers. 'Thus Sotho mine workers on the Free State mines worked longer contracts on the mines and returned more regularly building up seniority', Moodie, Going for Gold, p. 198.
94. Interview, NT. NUM representative Jerry Majatladi provided newspapers with a similar account of the conflict although he alleged that when the fighting started mine security intervened on the side of the Russians. Weekly Mail, 2-8 November 1990.
95. This account of the Harmony conflict was gleaned from a series of interviews with security personnel, hostel managers and Industrial Relations officers.
96. See the Weekly Mail, 2-8 November and 9-15 November 1990 for NUM accusations of mine security assisting the Marashea in the conflict.
97. Interview, KK.
98. Interview, MB.
99. Interview, SO, Lesotho, 13 September 1998.
100. Goldstone Commission, p. 17.
101. Moodie, Going for Cold, p. 203.
102. Report of the Commission of Enquiry into Events at the Bafokeng North Mine During March 1992, pp. 27-31.
103. See interviews with KB, Lesotho, July 1998; ML, Lesotho, 19 May 1998; TS, Soweto, 18 June 1998 and MM for Russian conflicts with the ANC.
104. A few Marashea have shown me their NUM membership cards.
105. Interview, de Kock.
106. Satchwell Commission of Enquiry into Violence at No. 8 Shaft Vaal Reefs Mine on January 28/29, 1995.
107. Report on Faction Fighting at Bracken (1 to 3 May 1987) and Leslie (10 to 20 May 1987), Gencor Manpower Division.
108. J. Motlatsi, 'The History of Violence in the Mining Industry of South Africa', paper presented to the National Executive Committee Meeting of the National Union of Mineworkers, 25 August 1995, p. 10; see also 'Reaping the Whirlwind', Report on a joint study by the National Union of Mineworkers and Anglo American Gold Division on the causes of mine violence, 1986, p. 24; Weekly Mail, 20-26 February 1987 and 2-8 November 1990.
109. J. Motlatsi, 'The History of Violence in the Mining Industry of South Africa', paper presented to the National Executive Committee Meeting of the National Union of Mineworkers, 25 August 1995, p. 10; see also 'Reaping the Whirlwind', Report on a joint study by the National Union of Mineworkers and Anglo American Gold Division on the causes of mine violence, 1986, p. 24; Weekly Mail, 20-26 February 1987 and 2-8 November 1990.
110. J. Motlatsi, 'The History of Violence in the Mining Industry of South Africa', paper presented to the National Executive Committee Meeting of the National Union of Mineworkers, 25 August 1995, p. 10; see also 'Reaping the Whirlwind', Report on a joint study by the National Union of Mineworkers and Anglo American Gold Division on the causes of mine violence, 1986, p. 24; Weekly Mail, 20-26 February 1987 and 2-8 November 1990.
111. Interview, P. Salae, Maseru, 5 June 1998.
112. Interview, R. de Boiz.
113. Interview, MM, Lesotho, 20 June 1998.
114. Interview, SO.
115. Goldstone Commission, pp. 14-15.
116. Some Marashea have stated they have heard of members of other groups being hired for this purpose, but none have admitted their own participation. The Marashea was not the only group which came into conflict with the NUM. See Moodie, Going for Gold, pp. 178-179. Mpondo workers were instrumental in breaking the NUM-initiated boycott of liquor outlets at Vaal Reefs No. 1 in 1985 and 'for several days thereafter the strike-breakers roamed the compound and skomplas, allegedly in full view of management and accompanied by compound police, attacking shaft stewards'.
117. Russian gangs have a history as mercenaries in taxi conflicts and have been engaged in assassinations since the 1950s. See L. Bank, 'A Culture of Violence: The Migrant Taxi Trade in QwaQwa, 1980-90', in E. Preston-Whyte and C. Rogerson (eds), South Africa's Informal Economy (Cape Town, 1991); numerous interviews with Marashea active in the 1950s to the present day establish that it was not uncommon in some groups of Marashea for members to be hired to injure or kill people.
118. Bregman Report, vol. 4, 'Report of the Commission of Enquiry into Violence at Vaal Reefs Mine, No. 1 Shaft Hostel During 1986', p. 533.
119. Report of the Commission (Bafokeng North), pp. 27-32, 37.
120. Interview, KK.
121. Interview, BM.
122. In a case study conducted in the late 1980s, 42 per cent of prostitutes interviewed in a large mining town were illegal migrants from Lesotho. Steinberg with Seidman, Gold Mining's Labour Markets, p. 33.
123. Interview, LT.
124. Male members freely admit that force was essential to controlling female members, especially those newly acquired by kidnapping, while female respondents report that living with violence or the threat of violence was part and parcel of being associated with Marashea - although they differentiate between men who were more harsh than others. For a discussion of gender relations within the Marashea, see P. Bonner, 'Desirable or Undesirable Basotho Women? Liquor, Prostitution and the Migration of Basotho Women to the Rand, 1920-1945', in C. Walker (ed), Women and Gender in Southern Africa to 1945 (Cape Town, 1990). I plan to address gender relations within the Marashea in a separate paper.
125. Interview, MR, Lesotho, 6 July 1998.
126. Since 1987, when 116,345 Basotho mineworkers were employed, Basotho have experienced a 48 percent decline in jobs on gold, coal, platinum and copper mines, so that in 1999, they numbered approximately 60,600 on the South African mines. G. Standing, J. Sender and J. Weeks, Restructuring the Labour Market: The South African Challenge (Geneva, 1996); personal communication, Chris Hechter, Regional TEBA Manager, Lesotho/Free State, 6 May 1999. While the actual number of jobs lost differs from one study to another, the downward trend is consistent.
127. Interview, RC.
128. Interviews, MK and WL. Seidman's research indicates that retrenched miners who return to Lesotho face even bleaker economic prospects than those who stay in South Africa. G. Seidman, 'Shafted: The Social Impact of Down-scaling in the OFS Goldfields', in J. Crush and W. James (eds), Crossing Boundaries: Mine Migrancy in a Democratic South Africa (Cape Town, 1995).
129. Interview, BM.
130. For example, a recent survey conducted in the Carletonville area found that 25 per cent of mineworkers and 69 per cent of sex workers tested are UIV positive. B. Williams, C. Campbell and C. MacPhail, 'The Carletonville Pilot Survey', in B. Williams, C. Campbell and C. MacPhail (eds), Managing HIV/AIDS in South Africa: Lessons from Industrial Settings (Johannesburg, 1999).