Johannesburg - Three members of the
Solidarity trade union were seriously injured in the unrest at the
Lonmin [JSE:LON] Marikana mine in the North West, the union said on
Monday.
Union deputy general secretary Gideon
du Plessis said the men were assaulted outside the mine's premises as
they reported for duty on Monday morning.
"One of our members sustained stab
wounds and another sustained burn wounds. The third member has a
fractured jawbone." Du Plessis said.
Solidarity called on the police and the
mine to take action. It had sent a letter to Lonmin, demanding
protection of workers.
"If the employer fails to meet
this demand, Solidarity will withdraw its members from the workplace
for safety reasons," said Du Plessis.
Four people have been killed in the
violence at the mine in the past four days.
A man was found gunned down on the
mine's premises on Monday, and another died in hospital after being
hacked at the mine with a panga on Sunday.
Two security guards died on Saturday
when their car was set alight. Four other workers were shot and
wounded on Friday and Saturday. Eight vehicles were torched on the
mine property on Sunday.
Violence at the Lonmin Marikana mine
has been linked to clashes between members of the National Union of
Mineworkers (NUM) and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction
Union (AMCU), which are reportedly fighting for control of local
mines.
Police spokesman Brigadier Thulani
Ngubane said no arrests had been made on Monday.
In February, the two unions also
clashed over membership at Impala Platinum's mines in Rustenburg.
Meanwhile, Cosatu's North West branch
on Monday called on a rival labour union to put an end to the
violence at Lonmin's mine in Marikana.
Provincial secretary Solly Phetoe said
the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) should
give miners freedom to choose a union.
"Cosatu wants to remind Amcu that
the Constitution of our country allows workers a freedom of
association," Phetoe said.
"That right has been extended in
the Labour Relations Act which give workers the rights and powers to
form their unions, and not to be forced to join some fly-by night
unions."
Violence at the mine had been linked to
clashes between members of the Cosatu-affiliated National Union of
Mineworkers and Amcu, which were reportedly fighting for control of
local mines.
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