Friday, August 31, 2012

SA Platinum miners charged with murder

I can't imagine this is going to improve the situation any. We could be looking at ongoing mining disruptions at this platinum mine and the trouble could spread to other platinum and gold mines.

From Reuters.com

Original source

(Reuters) - South African prosecutors on Thursday charged 270 striking miners with murder of 34 co-workers seen being shot dead in a hail of police bullets captured in videos broadcast around the world.

Prosecution have filed papers invoking a measure called "common purpose" seldom used since the dying days of apartheid, arguing the miners were complicit in the killings since they were arrested at the scene with weapons.

Legal experts said the move will likely collapse when a court hearing bail applications for the 270 near the mine resumes sessions next week and lambasted prosecutors for inflaming a tense situation by seeking a mass indictment that will eventually be rejected.

"This is bizarre and shocking and represents a flagrant abuse of the criminal justice system in an effort to protect the police and/or politicians," Pierre de Vos, a law expert at the University of Cape Town, wrote in a blog entry.

"The apartheid state often used this provision to secure a criminal conviction against one or more of the leaders of a protest march, or against leaders of struggle organizations like the ANC." Read more

Aug 30, 2012 by AlJazeeraEnglish


Mine strike update:

JOHANNESBURG (MINEWEB) - 

Original source

The National Union of Mineworkers spokesperson, Lesiba Seshoka, has confirmed reports of a renewed standoff at Lonmin's Eastern Platinum operations - part of the broader Marikana mine.

In a move that is indicative that tensions are still running high, Seshoka said that the union has had reports that a group of approximately 30 people are harassing workers and threatening them that if they return to work they will be killed.

A caller into a local radio station has made the same claims and said that the group was based at one of the hostels at the mine.

Lonmin has confirmed that preliminary attendance figures for Monday are on average 13% across all shafts. "We understand that employees are waiting for the environment to be safe before returning to work. There have been incidents of intimidation towards bus drivers overnight as well as intimidation of Eastern's workers this morning, preventing them from coming to work. Management is appealing to all stakeholders to remain calm," said the miner's press release.

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