‘SA time bomb explodes’

A protester licks his spear outside the Lonmin mine in Rustenburg. Photo: Reuters

A protester licks his spear outside the Lonmin mine in Rustenburg. Photo: Reuters

Published Aug 17, 2012

Share

North West - The shootout at Lonmin mine in Marikana, Rustenburg, which left more than 30 people dead was a culmination of the blatant disregard for the lives of African people, The Sowetan wrote in a front-page editorial on Friday.

South Africa viewed its Constitution as the “best on earth”, but that had all changed with the incident, the daily newspaper wrote.

“That's what Marikana means. It has raised this unmitigated crudeness as if to awaken us to the reality of the time bomb that has stopped ticking - it has exploded.”

The editorial comment was headlined “African lives cheap as ever”.

In its editorial The Times newspaper wrote that the scenes from Marikana mine were “horrifyingly familiar for all the wrong reasons”.

“They seemed to be located in a past South Africa where stand-offs between police and civilians were ordinary sights… but this was no apartheid moment.”

The Times wrote that the country's image as a place in which to conduct business had also been affected.

“The images were transmitted across the world along with the news that the share price of Lonmin, the company against which the workers are striking, had slumped to a 2008 low.”

The Beeld newspaper wrote that the deaths at the mine were not just a human tragedy, but would shake the politics and economy of the country.

Foreign investors would be questioning the country's political and economic stability.

“As a result of the embattled world economy, platinum mines are engaged in a battle for survival. It requires unusually wise leadership from unions, politicians and mining management to manager workers' expectations.” - Sapa

Related Topics: