Johannesburg - Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant on Thursday
said she had met with the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union
(Amcu) in Rustenburg in a bid to diffuse tensions in Marikana.
"The meeting was cordial," Oliphant said in a
statement.
"Amcu briefed us on their side of the story and what...
issues they are confronted with in the mines."
Oliphant said the parties agreed to continue talking to find
a solution, which she was optimistic about.
Last Thursday, 34 people were killed and over 70 injured at
Lonmin's platinum mine when police opened fire on them.
Amcu is the rival union of the National Union of
Mineworkers.
The protests at the mine were believed to be linked to
rivalry between the two unions over recognition agreements at the mine. Workers
also wanted higher wages.
Last week, Amcu told reporters it was a recognised trade
union with 7 000 members employed at Lonmin [JSE:LON], most of them at its
Karee mine.
It had about 30 000 members nationally.
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