Two union officials shot at Lonmin Platinum Mine in Marikana, South Africa.

Two union officials have been shot, one fatally, in an incident at the Lonmin-owned Marikana Platinum Mine in South Africa. Two gunmen initially opened fire on one of the officials outside the office of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) at the mine. When the official fled into the office his assailants pursued him and killed him. A second union official, described as a treasurer, confronted the men and was also shot, though not fatally. He is now in a critical condition in hospital having sustained six bullet wounds. The names of the officials have not been released.

A police vehicle at the Marikana Platinum Mine. Sky News.

The NUM has been involved in an ongoing dispute with a rival union, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) which has resulted in bloodshed on a number of occasions. Last month a negotiator from the AMCU was gunned down in a bar. The NUM is closely associated with the ruling ANC, and was heavily involved in the struggle against apartheid. However since the ANC came to power it has been accused of becoming to close to the mining companies, who the ANC need to remain on good terms with. The newer AMCU claim that workers in the mining industry are receiving considerably lower wages than they ought to be able to expect, and have organized a string of strikes across the sector, brining a number of mining companies to the negotiating table, but also resulting in some violent clashes with the police and members of other political organizations. In August 2012 police opened fire on AMCU workers at a rally at the Marikana Mine, killing at least 34 people.

See also At least 10 South African miners injured by rubber bullets in confrontation at Rustenburg mine, Pregnant woman killed in rioting over Tanzania gas pipeline, Uranium mining to begin in Tanzania and Massacre at Lonmin Marikana Platinum Mine, Rustenburg, South Africa.

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At least 10 South African miners injured by rubber bullets in confrontation at Rustenburg mine.

At least 10 miners have been hospitalized after security guards fired rubber bullets in a confrontation at Rustenburg Chrome Mine, 120 km northwest of Johannesburg, which is operated by German company Lanxess. About 500 workers had gathered at the mine where workers are striking in demand of higher wages. The mining company claim only two people were injured after shots were fired into the ground by guards acting in self defense, after stones were thrown at managers injuring two of the guards, but this contradicts reports by local police and hospitals.

The Rustenburg Chrome Mine. Lanxess.

The Lanxess mine is one of a number of mines in the area that have been hit by wildcat strikes, fueled by rivalry between two unions operating in the area. The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has close links to the ruling African National Congress (ANC) and does not support the strikes, while the newer Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) is fighting for higher wages for its workers, something the ANC and some mine-owners claim may cause companies to pull out of South Africa (although, given current high demands for metals globally it seems likely that mines could be swiftly leased to knew companies in the event of this happening).

The ongoing dispute has led to a number of confrontations between miners and authorities, most notably in August 2012 when 34 Amcu members were killed when police opened fire at the Lonmin operated Marikana Platinum Mine, also in Rustenburg. Tensions have been high this month after Mawethu Stevens, an Amcu negotiator who persuaded Lonmin to recognize Amcum was gunned down in a bar by unknown assailants. South African President Jacob Zuma has promissed an enquiry into the Marikana massacre.

See also At least 20 miners killed in North Kivu mine collapse,  Over 60 feared dead in Darfur gold mine collapse, Uranium mining to begin in Tanzania, Two Sierra Leonean artisanal miners killed by soil cave-in and Massacre at Lonmin Marikana Platinum Mine, Rustenburg, South Africa.

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Chilean miners strike after landslip kills worker.

Mineworkers at the Radomiro Tomic Copper Mine in Chile's Atacama Desert downed tools on Saturday 30 March 2013, demanding the removal of company managers the hold responsible for the death of a co-worker, Nelson Barria, who was killed in a landslip at the mine on Saturday 23 March. The mine's General Manager, Francisco Carvajal, has voluntarily stood down, but remains employed by the company and it is unclear if this will appease unions, who have complained of a revolving door culture in which managers quietly return to posts from which they have been removed.

The Radomiro Tomic Mine. La Tercera.

The Radomiro Tomic Mine is operated by the state-owned Codelco mining company. It is situated at an altitude of over 3000 m, and is a relatively new mine; the deposits it works have been known about since the 1950s, but production did not begin till 1995, when rising copper prices and improved mining technology made excavation at the remote site viable. The mine produces about 2.5% of the world's annual copper production, or about 25% of the Chilean total (approximately 428 000 tonnes last year), though production has dropped in the last two years, as have many Chilean mines. Coldelco is planning around US$25 billion in modernizing facilities across the country over the next decade.

The Chilean Copper Workers’ Federation has threatened to expand the strike across the country if it's demands are not met. The union is unhappy about creeping privatization of the organization; the company's healthcare system has been privatized and many jobs are now being outsourced. They are demanding a return to full nationalization of facilities, along with better job security and pensions.

This comes amid deteriorating industrial relations within other parts of the company; workers at the Codelco-owned Angamos Port have been on strike over working conditions since mid-March.

See also 83 feared dead after Tibetan landslip, Polish miners rescued after Earthquake, Eruption on Mount Copahue, Massacre at Lonmin Marikana Platinum Mine, Rustenburg, South Africa and Operations ceased at Padcal Mine following flooding. 

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Massacre at Lonmin Marikana Platinum Mine, Rustenburg, South Africa.

Police in South Africa have reportedly opened fire on a group of striking miners armed with sticks and machetes, killing 18 people, on Thursday 16 August 2012 (versions of this story vary slightly, some sources put the death toll as high as 38, with the BBC, London, claiming only 12 workers were killed, that the miners were armed with machetes, clubs, spears, petrol bombs and grenades, and that the police tried to disperse the protesters with tear-gas before firing; however the source of this claim is unclear as it is not reported in other news sources). Workers belonging to the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union have been on strike at the Marikana Platinum Mine since Friday 10 August, demanding a sharp increase in wages, but mine owners, London-based Lonmin PLC, have refused to negotiate with the union and declared the strike illegal. Clashes earlier in the week led to the deaths of at least ten people, including two policemen and two security guards.

Police surveying the bodies of striking miners outside the Marikana site. AP.

The dispute is apparently partly fueled by rivalry between the official  National Union of Mineworkers, which is linked to the ruling African National Congress, and which Lonmin PLC do recognize, and the more radical Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, which claims that improvements in the lives of mine-workers in post-Apartheid South Africa are coming to slowly, with workers still living in shantytowns and receiving very low wages 18 years after the ANC came to power. Despite not supporting the strike and urging workers to return to work, the National Union of Mineworkers has accused Lonmin of contributing to the unrest by offering allowances to some workers outside the formal bargaining process.

South Africa is the world's largest producer of Platinum, accounting for 77% of global production, and having 80% of the world's known reserves. The Marikana mine alone accounts for 12% of the world's production, with a yearly production target of 750 000 ounces (unlikely to be met this year due to the industrial action). Platinum is currently trading at slightly under US$1440 per ounce, though this has risen this week due to the fall in production at the Marikana mine. Workers at the mine are currently said to be earning around R5000 per month (~US$600), with the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union demanding R12 500 (~US$1520). 

The incident has provoked widespread shock in South Africa, which has not seen such events since the  end of Apartheid rule in 1994. Following news of the massacre shares in Lonmin fell 6.7% on the London Stock Exchange and 7.3% in Johannesburg; the share-price has fallen 13% since the start of the strike. In January this year a similar round of strikes closed the Impala Platinum mine (the world's largest Platinum mine, accounting for 25% of global production) for six weeks, led to at least three deaths, and pushed the price of Platinum up by 15%.

See also Operations ceased at Padcal Mine following flooding, Seven workers killed by mine explosion in Hunan Province, China, Miners trapped by flooding at Qielichong Coal Mine in Hunan Province, China, Human Rights Watch reports on mining in India and Protest group Appalachia Rising occupy the offices of four US Representatives.

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