Silicosis: “A tragic history of rights violations”

This week, Sonke Gender Justice and the Treatment Action Campaign are joining former miners in a court hearing seeking certification for a class action lawsuit seeking damages to be paid to former gold miners who are now sick with #‎silicosis‬ and/or #‎tuberculosis‬. Because of being laid off work due to ill health caused while working underground, the ex miners are now destitute and have no income as they have not been adequately compensated by their former employers. Sonke is providing leading evidence in the case of the impact of the occupational lung illnesses the former miners are suffering from, particularly the gendered impact of the diseases, which forces women and girl children to carry the burden of caring for their husbands and fathers, thus depriving them of opportunities to become economically active and to take up educational training. This video illustrates the dynamics of this impact.