THE Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) says there were no incidents that required any of the nine overwintering team members at South Africa’s Antarctic research base, the SANAE IV, to be brought back to Cape Town.

This follows reports at the weekend that one of the researchers at the base had sent a pleading email last week claiming a member of the team had attacked them and was issuing further threats.

They claimed concerns about the accused member had been raised while there was still a chance for him to be removed and sent home aboard the SA Agulhas II.

The department has since said that the man involved in an alleged assault has written a formal apology to the victim and participated in further psychological evaluation.

The Department said the alleged perpetrator had shown remorse and was willingly cooperative to follow any interventions recommended.

DFFE activated a Labour Relations process to deal with the matter as it relates to the alleged physical assault. An alleged sexual harassment is also being investigated.

“The Department confirms that there were no incidents that required any of the nine overwintering team members to be brought back to Cape Town. If such incidents occurred, the management team of the Department would have replaced such an overwintering team member with immediate effect, as the DFFE’s position on the matter is clear: zero tolerance for any misconduct that would affect the working and relationship conditions at the SANAE IV. At the time the vessel departed for Antarctica on February 1, 2025, all was in order.”

According to the department, the alleged assault between two members of the overwintering team was reported on February 27.

“The Department immediately activated the response plan to engage the individuals involved through trained professionals in order to mediate and restore relationships at the base. This process has been ongoing on an almost daily basis in order to ensure that those on the base know that the Department is supportive and willing to do whatever is needed to restore the interpersonal relationships, but also firm in dealing with issues of discipline.”

Minister Dion George, together with the Director-General of the Department, Nomfundo Tshabalala, have personally taken charge of the management processes, the department noted.

“This is particularly important given the fact that a majority of usual operations at all other scientific bases in Antarctica have stopped due to the onset of winter and unpredictable weather conditions.”

Due to the extreme nature of the environment in Antarctica, the DFFE said it followed a thorough process in the recruitment of individuals and requires that each individual being considered for an interview is subjected to an independent, confidential and professional psychometric analysis to ensure they are able to cope with the isolation, and can work and live with others in the confined space of the bases.

“Even though all of the assessments and evaluations show no areas of concern, it is not uncommon that once individuals arrive at the extremely remote areas where the scientific bases are located, an initial adjustment to the environment is required.”

Cape Times