SA Miners: NPA Drops Charges

South Africa has dropped the unpopular ‘common purpose’ murder charges laid against striking mine workers over the death of their fellow workers.

Last week the National Prosecuting Authority said that all the miners it charged including some who did not run towards the police were complicit in the death of their comrades under an apartheid-era law. The reaction towards this was generally negative and the charges have now been dropped. Lawyers for the miners had given today as the deadline for the charges to be dropped.

A new precedent was set in the decision not to charge as it was determined that a group cannot have a purpose. That is something an individual can do.

Any chance the common purpose law could be repealed?

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