Miners must return to work Monday or face being fired from the platinum minewhere rivalry between unions exploded into violence that led to the deaths of44 people in a week, Lonmin PLC said Sunday. Thirty-four strikers were gunneddown by police in one of the worst displays of state violence since apartheidended in 1994.
President Jacob Zuma declared a week of national mourning starting Monday tocommemorate the lives of all South Africans who have died violently, especiallythe 44 at Marikana mine.
"The nation is in shock and pain," Zuma said in a statement. "Wemust this week reflect on the sanctity of human life ... We must avoidfinger-pointing and recrimination. We must unite against violence from whateverquarter."
Some 3,000 rock-drill operators called RDOs have been leading an illegal strikeamong the mine's 25,000-strong labor force plus 10,000 contractors.Intimidation and threats of violence kept many more away.
"The safety and security of our employees is paramount and nobody will beasked to report for duty if the police consider them in danger ofreprisals," CFO Simon Scott said in a statement.
Lonmin had initially ordered miners to return to work by Friday, then, afterthe shootings, changed the deadline to Monday, spokeswoman Sue Vey said.
"The final ultimatum provides RDOs with a last opportunity to return towork or face possible dismissal," the company said in a statement Sunday."Employees could therefore be dismissed if they fail to heed the finalultimatum."
Strikers said they were not sure what to do. The company has not responded totheir demands for the minimum wage to be increased from R5,500 ($688) toR12,500 ($1,560).
Last year after a similar dispute over labor representation stopped work at itsnearby Karee mine, Lonmin fired all 9,000 workers. Then it asked them toreapply for their jobs and most were rehired.
"Because we work as a majority, if the majority goes back to work tomorrowI'm going too," said miner Vuyisile Mchiza.
But "If the majority is not going back to work tomorrow, I'm not goingeither because I won't be able to go to work while others are sittinggrieving."
Another vowed not to go to work Monday, telling the South African PressAssociation that, "Expecting us to go back to work is like an insult —many of our friends and colleagues are dead." He was not identified byname for fear of recriminations.
Jeff Mathunjwa, head of the union to which the strikers belong, said he was nottalking to journalists until Tuesday, when asked how he was advising hismembers.
More than 100 people, miners, their families and local community members,processed past the mine Sunday singing hymns as they made their way to thedusty veld where police officers fired a barrage of shots from automatic riflesand pistols at a group of charging miners on Thursday.
A memorial was led by Pastor Sakhumzi Qiqimana of Marikana New CreationMinistry, who told those gathered: "Now we have no power to come in themiddle of the negotiations of the company and the workers, but we are here nowto pray and say 'God forgive us,' and now we are here to say 'This (killing)must stop.'"
Police say one of the charging miners shot at them first with a pistol and thatthey acted in self-defense. Earlier in the week, the strikers had butchered twocaptured police officers with machetes.
Lonmin said Saturday that it will pay for the educations of all children ofmine employees killed in the unrest, up to university level.
A presidential statement Sunday said Zuma would announce the composition of ajudicial commission of inquiry into the killings and its terms of referencewithin a few days. It said he had appointed 10 Cabinet ministers and aprovincial premier to visit Marikana on Monday to lead support for bereavedfamilies including the identification of bodies, burials and counseling.
Many people have said they do not know whether missing husbands and sons areamong the dead, among 78 wounded, or among more than 250 arrested on chargesranging from public violence to murder.
Zuma urged South Africans to "reaffirm our belief in peace, stability andorder and in building a caring society free of crime and violence."
The shootings have South Africans debating their country's magnified levels ofviolence, and the frequency with which they resort to violence to resolvedisputes. South Africa has one of the highest murder and rape rates in theworld.