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Anglo American faces new silicosis protest

Cape Town - The planned high profile protest both inside and outside the Anglo American plc [JSE:AGL] annual general meeting in London this afternoon (Thursday) is highlighting renewed claims by gold miners suffering the deadly occupational lung disease of silicosis. 

But the London protest is primarily a public relations exercise since the British High Court last year dismissed the application to sue Anglo in that country.

The civil action lawyer, Richard Meeran and his firm, Leigh Day, have been involved in several claims against South African mining companies and intend to take the British ruling on appeal.

The firm, with the backing of Action for Southern Africa (ActSA), the former anti-apartheid movement, has also released an online video illustrating the plight of former gold miners.

National Union of Mineworkers president and putative ANC MP, Senzeni Zokwana, has flown to London to confront the Anglo shareholders in support of the Leigh Day claims on behalf of 4 400 miners.  

The issue of the current platinum strike and the Marikana massacre will also be raised by some of the protestors who plan to picket at the meeting.

However, the main focus in London will be on gold mines and on Anglo American and its subsidiaries that have been targeted by Meeran and Leigh Day.  But, at the same time a class action suit on behalf of more than 30 000 miners is already underway in South Africa.

Two local law firms, together with the Legal Resources Centre (LRC), have launched the suit that could result in claims totaling billions of rand in compensation.  

The class action involves all gold mining companies currently operating in South Africa.

The mining companies have until May 31 to file opposing papers and the matter could be scheduled for a hearing before year end.  

Legal precedent already exists for the payment of compensation to miners suffering silicosis and the related silico-tuberculosis.

The LRC, that was originally involved with Leigh Day, is now backing the local consolidated application, headed by lawyers Charles Abrahams and Richard Spoor.  

Abrahams is one of the attorneys involved in the multi-billion dollar apartheid claims case in the United States, while Spoor is perhaps the country’s best-known litigator in cases involving occupational health and safety.

 - Fin24

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