I have today written to President Zuma to request him to require that Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant intervene in the wage dispute in De Doorns and bring together the relevant stakeholders to begin negotiations towards establishing a new minimum wage level for farm workers. (Please see letter below).

The consequences of the current crisis in the Hex River Valley will be very severe for the Western Cape and South Africa as a whole if they are not immediately addressed.

I am also calling on President Zuma to require that COSATU enters the discussions in good faith and ends its incitement and intimidation.

This matter can only be resolved through Minister Oliphant taking this urgent step.

Text of letter from Western Cape Premier Helen Zille to President Jacob Zuma, November 13 2012:

13 November 2012

MrJ G Zuma

The Honourable President Private Bag X1000

PRETORIA

0001

Dear President Zuma

I have experienced first-hand the intimidation and political mobilisation that is causing the arson and illegal strikes to spread across the Western Cape Province. I have also had first hand reports from others. An sms has been going around, driving a campaign to "bring Agriculture Western Cape to its knees"

The consequences of this crisis will be very severe, not only for the Western Cape but for South Africa as a whole. it will very seriously impact on our food export industry and the hundreds of thousands of people who are dependent on it. It will also have a profound impact on the fundamental issue of food security in South Africa.

The proximate cause of the current impasse is the crucial matter of minimum wages for farm workers.

The gazetted amount of R347.10 per week (approx. R70 per day) has been established as the minimum wage by the National Minister of Labour, Minister Mildred Oliphant in March 2012.

We believe the current conflict could be defused if the Minister would bring together the relevant stakeholders and begin negotiations towards establishing a new minimum wage level for farm workers.

We call on you to require Minister Oliphant to do this immediately.

We also call on you to require COSATU to enter these discussions in good faith and to end incitement and intimidation. It is nothing short of a disgrace that a formal COSATU statement announced "Marikana has come to farms."

Minister Marius Fransman's role could only be for the purpose of political aggravation of a volatile situation, and it certainly has had this impact.

This matter can be resolved through an immediate request from you to Minister Oliphant to take this essential step.

I look forward to hearing from you as a matter of urgency.

Yours sincerely

Signed: Helen Zille

PREMIER

(HELEN ZILLE)

Issued by the Office of the Western Cape Premier, November 13 2012

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