JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Mining Affected Communities United in Action (Macua) is calling on President Jacob Zuma to send the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA) Amendment Bill back to Parliament for proper community participation, the organisation announced on Tuesday.

The controversial MPRDA Amendment Bill was first approved by the National Portfolio Committee on Mineral Resources on March 6, after which Parliament approved the Bill on March 12, and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) approved it on March 27, clearing it to be signed into law by Zuma.

Macua, which stated that government had allowed two laws on mining and land rights to be rushed through the NCOP, would also be picketing at the Department of Mineral Resources’ (DMR’s) regional offices on Wednesday to draw attention to its concerns.

Macua said in a media release that when the MPRDA Amendment Bill and the Restitution of Land Rights Amendment Bill were first introduced to Parliament the organisation expected that Parliament would listen to the communities and include them in the process; however, “instead they treated communities who went to Parliament very badly, questioning the mandates and ridiculing their language use”.

Further, during the NCOP process only two hearings were held in the provinces, with no time for communities to have their say despite five provinces indicating that there had to be more community participation in the adoption of mining laws.

“No recommendations made by communities were included in the Bill,” Macua said.

Meanwhile, Webber Wentzel mining head Peter Leon told Mining Weekly Online earlier this month that a lack of public consultation by the NCOP during its consideration of the MPRDA Amendment Bill could potentially render the Bill unconstitutional.

He added, should the President have reservations about the constitutionality of any particular Bill, he could refer it back to the National Assembly for reconsideration. The NCOP would participate in the reconsideration of a Bill if the issues of constitutionality related to procedural matters that involved it.

“It is, thus, possible that the President could refer the MPRDA Amendment Bill back to Parliament for reconsideration if he is made aware of the constitutional issues in relation to the Bill, in particular the issue of inadequate consultation during the NCOP process,” he stated.

Further, the President could also, under Section 79(4)(b) of the Constitution refer the Bill to the Constitutional Court for a decision on its constitutionality if the Bill, after reconsideration, was returned to the President without fully addressing his reservations.

“Should the President fail to refer the Bill back to Parliament, or to the Constitutional Court, any interested person could possibly succeed in an application to court to declare the Bill unconstitutional on the grounds of inadequate consultation,” Leon noted.

Meanwhile, Macua also, in a letter requested an urgent meeting with Mineral Resources Minister, which would take place on Wednesday.

Macua further called on the Minister to immediately withdraw the Amendment Bill from the legislative process or to call on the President to refer the Bill back to Parliament, to agree to engage in a participatory process that included mining-affected communities and to include mining-affected communities in all stakeholder platforms sponsored or funded by the DMR.

Macua also, in the letter, asked the Minister to include in the MPRDA further protections for communities, as set out in submissions made to the Parliamentary portfolio committee, and to agree to work with Macua to develop a People's Mining Charter which gave greater emphasis to the rights of communities as enshrined in the Constitution.