It was 10 years ago when photojournalist Leon Sadiki received a call from his editor about events unfolding at Marikana. 

When Sadiki arrived at the scene on August 14 he found a situation unlike any he had encountered. He said attempting to visually document the story was difficult as some striking mineworkers were not open to the media's presence.

However, Sadiki and other journalists negotiated access with a leader of the workers, Mgcineni Noki. He convinced fellow strikers that having their stories told would help convince Lonmin's management to engage with their demands. 

The day before the massacre, Sadiki captured what would become the strike's defining image. His photograph shows Noki, draped in a green blanket, his fist outstretched, walking among the striking miners.

The next day police shot dead 34 workers, including Noki, who became known as “the man in the green blanket”.

Sadiki was surprised at the reaction to his photograph and the manner in which it was received by the public.

“I was just trying to capture the character of Mambush [Noki]. Something that could capture that he was the leader of the strike. He was someone who led from the front. Even in the final seconds of his life he lay face down in front of his colleagues."

The image and others taken by Sadiki form part of an exhibition that opens on Tuesday at the Kalashnikovv Gallery in Braamfontein, Johannesburg.

It features images from various photojournalists who documented the events.

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