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August 20, 2012

Striking Miners Face Deadline Days After Mass Slaying 
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Striking workers at the South African mine where police shot dead 34
people last week face a deadline to return to work today or face the
loss of their jobs. The victims were killed more than a week after
walking off the job at the Marikana platinum mine, owned by Lonmin, the
world's third largest producer of platinum. Police say they shot after
workers armed with machetes ignored calls to disperse but the worker's
union says the police committed a massacre. In response, South African
President Jacob Zuma announced a week of national mourning as well as
the formation of a commission of inquiry.

President Jacob Zuma: "We have to uncover the truth about what happened
here. In this regard I have decided to institute the commission of
inquiry. The inquiry will enable us to get to the real cause of the
incident and derive the necessary lessons too, however today is not an
occasion for blame, finger pointing or recrimination — today
challenges us to restore calm and to share the pain of the affected
families and communities."

The shooting marked the worst mass killing in South Africa since the end
of apartheid. The head of South Africa's Association of Mineworkers and
Construction Union said it evoked memories of the Sharpville massacre of
1960.

Joseph Mathunjwa: "I thought that the history that I read about
Sharpville massacre was a history I never thought that, in 2012, we will
experience the same massacre under the democratic-elected government by
ourselves — this is the shame."

 

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