South Africa’s largest union backs mine nationalization

South Africa’s National Union of Mineworkers’ central committee on Wednesday backed the country’s Freedom Charter clause on nationalization and the ruling ANC party’s resolution of 2010 to look at a greater role for the state in the economy.

NUM is the largest union and represents the majority of workers in South Africa’s mining industry. Through its affiliation with the Congress of South African Trade Unions it is also part of the country’s ruling alliance, which next year will make a formal decision on the nationalization of the resource sector, long the bedrock of the African nation’s economy.

Fin24 reports:

The NUM was “engaging” with the ANC and the party was the “decision-making body” in the matter.

Businesslive reports:

“The national wealth of our country, the heritage of South Africans, shall be restored to the people. The mineral wealth beneath the soil, the banks and monopoly industry shall be transferred to the ownership of the people as a whole,” the charter states.

On Sunday MINING.com reported:

A new local documentary to be screened in cinemas next week and engineered to make a case for the nationalisation of the mining industry called Mining for Change: A Story of South African Mining, presents studio footage of ANC Youth League president Julius Malema, likening mining company owners to car thieves.