A POLICE witness yesterday admitted that a decision to move into tactical phase of their operation during a wage unrest at Marikana - which left 34 dead - was made without any imminent threat at the time.
It also appeared that North West police commissioner Lieutenant-General Zukiswa Mbombo took this decision to move to phase three of the operation plan based on the fact that miners refused to lay down their weapons, rather than being based on any threat.
This was a decision she made and conveyed to national police commissioner Riah Phiyega the night before last year's August 16 massacre - even without making her commanders on the ground aware.
Police witness Charl Annandale, who was under cross-examination at the Marikana Commission of Inquiry sitting in Rustenburg, said he only received instructions from Mbombo at a meeting with other commanders held less than an hour before police shot the striking miners.
Evidence leader advocate Geoff Budlender referred to Mbombo's statement submitted as evidence to the commission in which she says on August 15, she told the national police commissioner about possibly executing the tactical phase - which included dispersing, disarming and arresting - should negotiations fail with the miners.
This seemed to surprise Annandale, who said: "It wasn't carried over to me."
He, however, tried to defend his bosses, saying they could not willy-nilly change the plan as the final decision could only come after advise by the joint operations committee.
This also gave rise to suggestions by Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union's president Joseph Mathunjwa that Mbombo had taken over the operation.
On the morning of the massacre, Mbombo told the media: "Today is D-Day... we are ending this matter."
But Annandale insisted the decisions on the plan, even to move to tactical phase of the plan, had to be agreed to by commanders led by deputy provincial commissioner William Mpembe and then approved by Mbombo.
The commission also heard that Mpembe had questioned the operation and warned of bloodshed.
He warned that the miners, some of whom had reportedly used muthi to make them strong and invincible, were pyched up and prepared to use their weapons.
Witness admits to police blunder in Marikana massacre
A POLICE witness yesterday admitted that a decision to move into tactical phase of their operation during a wage unrest at Marikana - which left 34 dead - was made without any imminent threat at the time.
It also appeared that North West police commissioner Lieutenant-General Zukiswa Mbombo took this decision to move to phase three of the operation plan based on the fact that miners refused to lay down their weapons, rather than being based on any threat.
This was a decision she made and conveyed to national police commissioner Riah Phiyega the night before last year's August 16 massacre - even without making her commanders on the ground aware.
Police witness Charl Annandale, who was under cross-examination at the Marikana Commission of Inquiry sitting in Rustenburg, said he only received instructions from Mbombo at a meeting with other commanders held less than an hour before police shot the striking miners.
Evidence leader advocate Geoff Budlender referred to Mbombo's statement submitted as evidence to the commission in which she says on August 15, she told the national police commissioner about possibly executing the tactical phase - which included dispersing, disarming and arresting - should negotiations fail with the miners.
This seemed to surprise Annandale, who said: "It wasn't carried over to me."
He, however, tried to defend his bosses, saying they could not willy-nilly change the plan as the final decision could only come after advise by the joint operations committee.
This also gave rise to suggestions by Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union's president Joseph Mathunjwa that Mbombo had taken over the operation.
On the morning of the massacre, Mbombo told the media: "Today is D-Day... we are ending this matter."
But Annandale insisted the decisions on the plan, even to move to tactical phase of the plan, had to be agreed to by commanders led by deputy provincial commissioner William Mpembe and then approved by Mbombo.
The commission also heard that Mpembe had questioned the operation and warned of bloodshed.
He warned that the miners, some of whom had reportedly used muthi to make them strong and invincible, were pyched up and prepared to use their weapons.
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