S Africa:Negotiators press for miners' rights

(Vatican Radio). The photograph shows a mine worker at the South African Lonmin Platinum Mine holding a placard that reads "we demand 12,500 rands" as negotiators search to broker a "peace accord" to calm tensioins after a violent strike at the mine where 44 people have been killed.

Tension has been running high and over 90% of the mine's 28,000 employees have been staying away from work since 34 miners were shot and killed by police on August 16 after an escalating standoff between rival unions that had already killed 10 people including 2 police officers.

More than 200 miners have appeared in Court facing violent strike related incidents.

Among the negotiators are mine management representatives, unions and non-union workers representatives, government representatives and Anglican Bishop Jo Seoka, President of the South African Council of Churches with a delegation.

The very day of the tragic shooting, Bishop Seoka was the one entrusted by the miners to present their demands to the mine Management before police shot 34 protesters dead and injured many others. He continues to engage with the striking miners and support the bereaved community in this difficult moment.

Speaking to Vatican Radio's Linda Bordoni, Bishop Seoka explains that the Church representatives began by creating a space for the delegation of the workers on strike to engage firstly with Management, and secondly with the Minister of Labour.

listen to the interview...

He says they are now engaged in a mediation process which includes the Government's Ministry of Labour and the Conciliatory Board with all the stakeholders including the Trade Unions and workers, and of course - he says - the Church is present.

He confirms that most of the workers are still assembled on the mountain in front of the Marikana Mine while their delegation is negotiating with Management.

However he says the atmosphere is peaceful and there is hope that the Management will respond positively to their demands.

He also expresses his optismism that something good will come out of these negotiations because - Bishop Seoka says: "it is in talking that some solutions will be found. The fact they are talking to each other gives us hope".

The bishop also speaks of the fact that the people of South Africa are very upset at the incidents. He says that according to the post-mortems carried out after the massacre, most of the victims were shot at a close range while running away, and some were shot away from where the crowd was. So, he says, people are upset about that because "these were defenceless people only asking for their right to fair wages".

He agrees that it's a terrible reminder of the times of apartheid, in particular of the Sharpeville massacre. Infact, bishop Seoka points out, this is the worst massacre since the infamous Sharpeville massacre, something nobody ever expected would happen again. "Because" he says, "in South Africa there is so much talk about dialogue, engaging each other and working for peace and reconciliation". So when the Police responded in this fashion it upset a lot of people.

Regarding the responsibility of President Zuma and of the Minister of Internal Afrairs, Bishop Seoka says Mr. Zuma has come to the Mines to address the workers. He says society seems to blame him for having failed to deal with the issues that the workers have been raising over time. And the Minister too has been around. He says the Minister of Mining is the one under question and scrutiny.

As regards the demands of the miners, Bishop Seoka says that in his opinion their requests are fair. He also says they are not rigid in their demands. The amount they are asking for is meant to kick-off negotiations.

The miners are saying that Lonmin is the third most profitable company in the world, and they are only asking for conditions that will allow them to send their children to school, be provided with health care and of course shelter for their families.

What is the South African World Council of Churches bringing to the negotiation table? "What we have brought to the situation is a space for dialogue. We are working on the issue of peace. We are providing various ministries to the workers". We can't give them everything they need, bishop Seoka says, but we are trying to respond to their necessities.

The families are asking for burial arrangements. The striking miners are demanding 12,500 rands per month across the board. They say they will not go back to work until their demands are met.

As regards the over 200 men who have been arrested , bishop Seoka says that is a judicial issue that he is not involved in.

Finally, as a South African, the bishop speaks of the sadness and disappointment that have derived from the shootings, "considering where we have come from, peacefully, and in a spirit of reconciliation".