Exhibition brings gold miners' rights out of the dark

A photographic exhibition featuring former South African mineworkers and their families uncovers the health impacts of gold mining and the legacy of the industry on future generations.

The Price of Gold, by British photographic artist Thom Pierce, is in Sydney as part of the Head On Photo Festival, open to the public from May 5 at Paddington’s Reservoir Gardens.

In a special preview event on May 3, hosted by the Australian Human Rights Institute and supported by The George Institute for Global Health and Maurice Blackburn Lawyers, Pierce will join Associate Professor Beth Goldblatt and Professor Andrea Durbach for a discussion called Capturing Community: A photographic exploration of the human impact of mining.

The 16 men pictured in the Sydney exhibition have silicosis, a preventable but incurable lung disease contracted from inadequate protection from silica dust, which makes them prone to infection and tuberculosis.

The men are parties in the largest class action ever brought in South Africa, against 32 mining companies. In January this year, an appeal of their case was postponed indefinitely, pending the outcome of settlement negotiations.

Associate Professor at the University of Technology Sydney and Visiting Fellow at UNSW Law, Beth Goldblatt, says it is unclear what amount the miners will receive and whether it will take account of the carers’ contributions.

However, the case has received wide coverage in South Africa, and Pierce’s photo series, which was published widely, has deepened support for the miners and their families.

"The case will certainly impact on the mining industry and worker’s rights and has already added to the pressure for change in this sector," Associate Professor Goldblatt said.

"The government is currently working on a mining charter. At the same time many of the problems facing workers and their families are still very evident."

Pierce worked with civil society groups to photograph all 56 miners and widows in their homes before the court case in 2016, driving more than 7000km over 20 days to reach them all.

Photographing the carers, who are usually women, was a vital part of the story, he said.

"The fact that a miner is sent home without compensation and without the skills or health to work impacts heavily on the people who have to care for them," Pierce said.

"Very often it becomes the woman who has to support the family financially, as well as raising the children and caring for her sick husband or father."

In each home Pierce has photographed, there are details that we recognise - a bed, a stove, a photograph on the wall. Each detail provides a chance to connect in some way.

Professor Durbach of UNSW Law said: "The impact of Thom’s photographs also has application to Australia where workplace silicosis remains a respiratory hazard. In addition, it points to the role of Australian mining companies that operate abroad, as in South Africa, in contributing to the ill-health of local workers, seemingly without any accountability."

Note to Editors:
Thom Pierce is available for interviews in Sydney from Wednesday, May 2.