[Magnetonium]

Excessive violence! A sign that situation in Africa is getting worse?

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/wor ... le4484031/

South African police opened fire Thursday on a crowd of striking miners that charged a line of officers trying to disperse them, killing some and wounding others in one of the worst shootings by authorities since the end of the apartheid era.

Police declined to offer casualty figures after the shooting at the Lonmin PLC mine near Marikana, a dusty town about 70 kilometers northwest of Johannesburg. However, the main South African news agency, SAPA, has reported that 18 people have been killed. Police ministry spokesman Zweli Mnisi acknowledged late Thursday some of the miners there had died as more police and soldiers surrounded the hostels and shacks near Lonmin's shuttered platinum mine.

The shooting happened Thursday afternoon after police failed to get the striking miners to hand over machetes, clubs and other weapons.

Some miners did leave, though others carrying weapons began war chants and soon started marching toward the township near the mine, said Molaole Montsho, a journalist with the South African Press Association who was at the scene.

The police opened up with a water cannon first, then used stun grenades and tear gas to try and break up the crowd, Mr. Montsho said.

Suddenly, a group of miners rushed through the underbrush and tear gas at a line of police officers. Officers immediately opened fire, with miners falling to the ground. Dozens of shots were fired by police armed with automatic rifles and pistols.

Images broadcast by private television broadcaster e.tv showed the gunfire ending with police officers shouting “cease fire!” By that time, bodies were lying in the dust, some pouring blood. Another image showed some miners, their eyes wide, looking in the distance at heavily armed police officers in riot gear.

It was an astonishing development in a country that has been a model of stability since racist white rule ended with South Africa's first all-race elections in 1994. The shooting recalled images of white police firing at anti-apartheid protesters in the 1960s and 1970s, but in this case it was mostly black police firing at black mine workers.

President Jacob Zuma said he was “shocked and dismayed at this senseless violence.”

“We believe there is enough space in our democratic order for any dispute to be resolved through dialogue without any breaches of the law or violence,” he said in a statement.

Barnard O. Mokwena, an executive vice president at Lonmin, would say only: “It's a police operation.” Lonmin is the world's third largest platinum producer

In a statement earlier Thursday, Lonmin had said striking workers would be sacked if they did not appear at their shifts Friday.

“The striking (workers) remain armed and away from work,” the statement read. “This is illegal.”

The unrest at the Lonmin mine began Aug. 10, as some 3,000 workers walked off the job over pay in what management described as an illegal strike. Those who tried to go to work on Saturday were attacked, management and the National Union of Mineworkers said.

On Sunday, the rage became deadly as a crowd killed two security guards by setting their car ablaze, authorities said. By Monday, angry mobs killed two other workers and overpowered police, killing two officers, officials said. Officers opened fire that day, killing three others, police said.

Tuesday and Wednesday, thousands of miners had gathered at a rocky cliff within sight of the mine's smelter. They cheered, sang and marched around with machetes and clubs under the watchful eye of police officers in armored trucks. Some leaders of the miners spoke with the police and largely followed their instructions, breaking up the protest as dusk fell.

Operations appeared to come to a standstill Tuesday as workers stayed away from the mines, where 96 percent of all Lonmin's platinum production comes from. The stoppage has spooked those investing in Lonmin. Stock in Lonmin plunged 7.27 percent in trading Thursday afternoon on the London Stock Exchange.

While the walkout appeared to be about wages, the ensuing violence has been fueled by the struggles between the dominant National Union of Mineworkers and the upstart Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union. Disputes between the two unions escalated into violence earlier this year at another mine.

Black miners long have faced low salaries and poor living conditions in shantytowns often beset by alcoholism, drug abuse and prostitution. Apartheid kept black African workers from more lucrative jobs offered to whites. Though the nation became truly democratic in the 1990s, the salaries of black miners remain low.

Mining drives the economy of South Africa, which remains one of the world's dominant producers of platinum, gold and chromium. Lonmin is the world's third largest platinum producer and its mine at Marikana produces 96 per cent of all its platinum. The violence has shaken the precious metals market, as platinum futures ended up $39, or 2.8 per cent, at $1,435.20 an ounce in trading Thursday on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

[Quantum]

Excessive violence! A sign that situation in Africa is getting worse?

How is this excessive violence? The decision of the police to shoot armed strikers to stem the violence is totally justified and they should ignore the demands of the mob. It's not like advanced societies haven't employed violence before.

[Magnetonium]

How is this excessive violence? Shooting armed strikers to put the end to violence is totally justified and has worked throughout history, including advanced societies such as the United States.

Thats what the media says. Do you really believe that shit? They didn't fire warning shots?? I don't see injured or dead officers. And they tried using force to get the striking workers out of there in the first place. Thats the best way of dealing with the situation, eh?

Its obvious something went really wrong here, when police guns down a group of people. Police were either unprepared, there was lack of leadership and control and improper way of dealing with armed protesters (machetes, rocks, metal and sticks, NOT guns).

[Quantum]

Thats what the media says. Do you really believe that shit? They didn't fire warning shots?? I don't see injured or dead officers. And they tried using force to get the striking workers out of there in the first place. Thats the best way of dealing with the situation, eh?

No, the media predictably took the side of the miners and tried to excuse their actions. The situation in South Africa is very different to the first world and the only language these miners understand is force, and they need to be shown who's boss so that they don't try that again.

Its obvious something went really wrong here, when police guns down a group of people. Police were either unprepared, there was lack of leadership and control and improper way of dealing with armed protesters (machetes, rocks, metal and sticks, NOT guns).

If the miners were not armed and attempted to argue in a reasonable manner, they wouldn't have been shot by the police. Never bring a knife to a gunfight.

[SE23]

This may be a sign for worst things to come, the situation in Africa is intolerable, despite being a "rainbow nation" its a violent decadent place, falling down into the traps of primitive tribalism. The ANC is corrupt and every social problem you can imagine is amplified in this country. This massacre may be the starting point, of the people in South Africa beginning to direct their anger at the government, regardless of the situation, if i was a white South African, i would get the hell out of there. Any uprising against the government will result in whites people killed regardless if they are affiliated with the ANC or not, Cape Town is apparently a racist city because there are too many whites
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree ... acist-city
Funny thing about humans throughout history, whenever times are hard, people blame the "deceitful, greedy,Privileged" minority, i can see this happening there. Its a shame because South Africa was a beacon of hope for an Africa free from white rule and making its own way in the world but this dream has now become a nightmare.

[Potemkin]

If the miners were not armed and attempted to argue in a reasonable, they wouldn't have been shot by the police. Never bring a knife to a gunfight.

Two police officers had been killed by miners about a week ago; apparently they were hacked to death with machetes. The police were therefore in a bad mood already, and were ordered to end the strike on Thursday. When the police tried to box in the miners with barbed wire, the miners opened fire on the police (or so the police claim). In the resulting exchange of gunfire, about three dozen miners and no police were killed. As Quantum said, never bring a machete to a gunfight.

[Quantum]

This may be a sign for worst things to come, the situation in Africa is intolerable, despite being a "rainbow nation" its a violent decadent place, falling down into the traps of primitive tribalism.

South Africa has been a violent place for a long time, before this massacre, Sharpsville and Soweto the uprisings. It's not like first world countries are immune from these situations. The Watts riots and the 1960s race riots in America are just one of my examples of the state using brutality against their citizens. The contrived moral outrage expressed by some people in the media is just dishonest and no doubt the same people who wanted to deploy the army to shoot the rioters last year.

The ANC is corrupt and every social problem you can imagine is amplified in this country. This massacre may be the starting point, of the people in South Africa beginning to direct their anger at the government, regardless of the situation, if i was a white South African, i would get the hell out of there. Any uprising against the government will result in whites people killed regardless if they are affiliated with the ANC or not, Cape Town is apparently a racist city because there are too many whites.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree ... acist-city

Why would you want the whites to leave SA just because of some goofy protestors? Even though I agree with many of your criticisms, leaving would just make it worse and I highly doubt that Western countries, especially the US and the UK (British investments in Lonmin PLC) would just stand there and allow SA to be destroyed, especially when that country has been increasingly under the tutelage of the West and has significant investments in the economy. That's just doomsday stuff and it's far more likely that the US will just invade that country under the pretext of instability.

[SE23]

I am not going to say America is a model country or safe haven, they have their own problems and yes violent riots as well, but the violence experienced there is nowhere near the same level as being experienced in South Africa. As for the police shooting, the violence of law enforcement agencies is usually mirrored by the violence in the country and region they police, so it hardly becomes surprising when you see police shooting protesters, when life is valued cheaply over there.

Goofy protesters ? I am talking about increasing attacks on white farmers and just general whites in South Africa. If the notion of "White privilege" is being prepetuated in South Africa like it is in the west, then when times go hard, they will be the perfect scapegoat minority to dish out violence to. History always repeats itself, and it seems like this cycle is coming around again, much like what was seen in Mugabe land. I don't know the details of the economic situation, you know better than me, maybe they will manage in the end but there is only so much a country can take.

[GrimReaper]

This shooting has not one factor which we must analyse, this started a week or so ago. The bargaining council which approved these strikes must take responsibility for granting the unions the right to strike. The hands of the union officials are full of blood and they should sit in front of the court and explain why these people died. They (UNION OFFICIALS) could not control the union members when it of great importance to do so.

The second major factor is that third world countries as most African and Middle Eastern countries has received democracy through over throwing of governments with the assistance of first world countries. These people in these parts of the world do not have an idea what democracy is or how to use it. We must remember these people which receives democracy does not have the back ground and will never understand the concept of respecting life, and all earth gives to you. The back ground of these groups of people never knew how to respect themselves or respect other living things on earth. Culturally they were brought up in one manner the head of the house dictates what will be done in such house holding. So the persons back ground is from listening to your dictator even if it is your king/head/father/president African and Middle Eastern countries can forget to have any stability in these parts of the world. Without dictators looking after these people they will never know what to do with democracy.

Then we have different cultures with different values being forced to live and inter act between each other. If there is a single group of people which feel they do not want to be part of a certain portion of population they are called racist and all kinds of phobias was made up by Doctors to try and give it a medical terminology.

In South Africa what we are discussing presently and this will keep on occurring more regularly is that people has lost their identity of where he comes from and to strive and live towards a certain goal. People of South Africa were forced to mix and mangle their own traditional and cultural history. It is fact when the English took slaves from Africa and forced them in to Europe and the Americas they did not adapt to the ways of those people who enslaved them, those people suffers of identity crisis up to today and do not know where they fit in to society.

What occurred at the Marikina mine reflects on all above factors which I mentioned. The mine worker has two different unions which was the choice of such an employee. The mine worker was then told by the unions that they will not back down for the other union they had different viewpoints culturally they had different values and ethics they support because they feel they can associate with such a group of people.

They clashed due to differences and started causing injury to co-workers and Couple of policeman were hacked to death security personnel set alight burned down structures because they cannot handle the realities that they have to bend a little. These people on the ground are barbaric people the police had to deal with. A week prior to this incident these police officers saw how their colleagues got hacked to death. These people workers members of society did not get what they want and no matter who or what they were planning on killing plundering and bullying their way to what they are striving. They don’t understand that democracy is part of giving little taking little and take other people in to consideration. Black people in South Africa thinks the world owes them something and if they demand they will get because their skin colour gives them the right to be always pampered and gets advantage from their skin colour.

it is getting ridiculously out of hand. Rule of law is there to ensure civil society lives in reasonable harmony. If there is no rule of law society will not exist as these occurrences will occur everyday every minute because everything is for free and if we don’t get it we will take it by force. This is why these types of groups exist.

I stand behind those officers who put their lives in danger to try and get these people to work according to rule of law and be civilised. Bheki Cele is the right person for this job and would not have pussyfooted around the problem and resolved it before it started. But NO the human right to strike exceeds the human right to live and go to work peacefully.

These UNIONS is going to be the down fall of democracy and a developing South Africa. Unions are like weeds and this countries rulers should ban and torch these unions economically and socially the unions are causing more harm than good. They should go to the gallows for what they have caused.

[Saffa]

Goofy protesters ? I am talking about increasing attacks on white farmers and just general whites in South Africa. If the notion of "White privilege" is being prepetuated in South Africa like it is in the west, then when times go hard, they will be the perfect scapegoat minority to dish out violence to. History always repeats itself, and it seems like this cycle is coming around again, much like what was seen in Mugabe land. I don't know the details of the economic situation, you know better than me, maybe they will manage in the end but there is only so much a country can take.

A good political forum with decency/respect amongst members My first post and as a South African and perhaps I can put things in perspective from an average SA citizen's point of view....
About myself - born in this country, a liberal 56years old white male and lived through most of the "apartheid" area and the current ANC rule. Most of what is seen and heard in the rest of the world is third hand reports from the media (which will only show the bad, because sensation sell - good news never makes the headlines) or what the country leaders make people believe when visiting aboard.

SE23 raise very valid points in the quote above; the killing of farmers are now so common in SA that it barely makes headlines here. In fact, my father and his wife was also victims of farm murders, she rape by all four attackers and the bodies set alight with fuel. Without being racist in any way, black people in SA do have a savage streak and murder come easy for many of them. People sometimes get killed outright just for a pair of Nike's they worn and in many cases for less. Many a tourist were being robbed and killed in the last few years and many firsthand witnesses of the brutality they can dish out, fact.
Since farm killings became a phenomenon here well over 3500 farmers had being killed and in doing so, destroying the food basket of the country. Overseas investors and current government actually bought many a top production farm and gave it to black empowerment programs and within a few short years these once successful farms were destroyed to nothing - even dwellings plundered right down to foundations - and these failures often makes the news. And now the ANC make noises to disown farms from whites at a price they seem fit to empower black farmers and the ANC youth league calls for just taking farms of white and to nationalize everything successful. Currently pointers are that we are following a path similar to Zimbabwe and need one say more.
There is a saying that one's past determine your future. That said, Africa (south of Egypt) is the history book of black African rule after the colonists were removed from power and poverty and famine is at the order of the day. Typical of African style these countries expect the first world to feed them for their failures.

Indeed, many South Africans privileged with the financial means and education, immigrated elsewhere and this exodus was called the "brain drain" and government actually pleaded for these ex saffas to return, but why should they return to a land of discrimination and affirmative action when you are white, corruption violence etc....
This land is my birth right, my forefathers worked this land since the early 1700 as settlers, why must I move.?

As it is now, the current ANC government is still harvesting from what the old "apartheid" government had sown but the sand it running out on that. The destroyed most of the social, medical, schooling etc infrastructures. The road network is in shambles due to no upkeep for the last 18 years, the police a corrupt unit were even a few of its leaders recently being jailed for corruption and where it is a common fact that "tjotsies" enrolled en mass into the police. Many big robberies are carried out by members of the police and recently a black magistrate was caught red-handed in an armed robbery
I cannot think of anything worthwhile to the upliftment of the country as a whole the ANC done in their tenure of rule except for a few soccer stadiums built - spotless and functional towns and cities they inherited from the old rule are now a pittance and in despair in some places - sewage plants don't work in many towns and raw sewage dumped in surrounding dams shutting down on social events at such dams and very common to see raw sewage flowing in streets. This last year the country is bend under protests and uproar due to poor service delivery. The reasons are simple - gravy train and affirmative action deployment. Unqualified or skilled persons are placed in management positions and usually these are ANC cronies that drain the financial coffers for their personal benefit.
They openly commit fraud and is not afraid because in the unlikely event of being prosecuted, there are two laws - one for ANC top dogs and one for the public. These top dogs usually walks out of jail serving a fraction of his jail term.
In short, SA went from a striving third world country to a typical African one where animals are slaughtered on streets and sold on pavements in the open.

And this brings me to the current state of affairs. People are poor in this country. The ANC fed only themselves with massive salaries, allowances, best cars parties etc and when election time come, smooth talk the people with false or unobtainable promises to keep the rule and the ink is not dry yet on the ballot papers, the masses are forgotten and the top guns back on their old ways. As said before, the country is bend under violent protests due to poor service delivery, housing and all other promises made in the past to them. The next election will be interesting.

The problem when black South African strike, is the fact that they do not do things in a civil way by asking and negotiating, no, they demand. Regardless of the situation or employer, if one ask you for something, you will stand still and listen, however, when someone gets aggressive in your face and demands, thing will not go smooth.

The massacre at Marikana which is the subject of this thread, started basically with demands and ended in bloodshed. First of all, unions are killing industries and job opportunities in this country with unrealistic demands which in turn causes a viscous cycle with consumer good getting more expensive and so on. For example, currently it is cheaper for most motor manufactures to rather import cars than building it locally, even when one consider that with an imported item, a lot of taxes, shipment etc are applicable.
The same is true with the mining industry - wages are much to high as with everything else used to mine and international prices down. Workers cannot work this out because they are mostly ill-iterated or lowly schooled. This is proven by the fact that the Marikana strikers had a sangoma (witchdoctor) on hand that fed them muti (medicine) that will make them invisible and bullets will not harm them which they believed

Peaceful strikers they were not; after the witches brew they took up big machetes, spears, knobkieries etc and then they attacked a few policemen. The police responded with rubber bullets but when life shots were fired at them, changed to sharp point ammunition. There is video material available which showed the strikers ambushing the police from behind their vehicles and firing of a gun towards the cops.
It is easy to sit on the sideline now and in hindsight blame the police for excessive force. BUT, put yourself in the police's shoes and when a thousand plus persons storm you with weapons, some shooting at you, you have to take a stand to protect your life and those of your colleagues.

Basically, the government and the unions are to blame for this tragedy and not the police. It is their job to explain the working of numbers to the workers on the ground instead of trying to put a company on its knees to get to their "demands". This short sightedness of unions and workers can cause a company to shut down and all jobs lost. Happened in the past and surely will happens again.

[SE23]

Out of interest why do South Africans with an education stay in the SA, I'm surprised that there any relatively safe places left, and even so, the possibility of being being randomly attacked would be too much of a risk. I understand its hard to gain visas to other countries if you are a South African, but there must surely be another way.

[Quantum]

^I hear that Cape Town and the Western Cape province is a pretty safe place, with a strong economy and functioning infrastructure under the opposition party, the Democratic Alliance and is the only major city and province that isn't under the control of the ANC. Thankfully it seems that the ANC won't control these areas for along time and try to ruin that place too.

It's just as hard for White South Africans to move to the West as it is for the Blacks and there's also the recession and homesickness which prompt them to move back to their country.

[Saffa]

SE23, not so easy to immigrate - host countries are only interested in people with university degrees or highly skilled trades in demand and the majority of white population just don't have those. Another factor is finances which are also costly and few can afford. On top if this host countries are also very strict on age etc, health etc. In my case where I do have the education, skills and financial means available, I was shown away for the simple fact I have a criminal record - something I done in a moment of madness as a youngster with friends about 35 odd years ago (not a violent charge) and still I am branded as a "criminal" after all these years, regardless of what you did with your life after the fact....

The Western Cape is successful and probably why most of the who's who in the financial world resides there. It is run by the opposition party which was "unofficially" a white party when it started but grown into a fully multiracial party it is now. There are some hot spots like the Cape flats where gangsterism and drugs are boss but this was a legacy they inherited from past rule when the won the Western Cape. But make no mistake, the ANC is doing its utmost to try and get this place under their rule because its putting their rule (or lack off) elsewhere in the spotlight. Quite often they (ANC) try to discredit the opposition to gain favor, usually this happens when hell broke out elsewhere in the country with violent protests of poor service delivery by government which is a regular issue over the last year...

Here is a little secret not many foreigners are aware off.
There is another place in SA that is also very successful and expanding rapidly with investors seeking opportunity there. This town is called "ORANIA" and is located on the border of the northern Cape. It is on private land set up by white South Africans where they can live their own lifestyle, be active within their own culture and speak their own language. They have their own municipality, schools which incidentally is the most modern in the country with electronic media and they even have their own bank and currency. Homes and buildings build there must comply to some minimum "green" environment issues, unheard of in SA. Violence and crime is basically non existent , everybody have a job since there are no free meals and every infrastructure working. In short, it is a homeland for Afrikaners build by Afrikaners.
This place is situated in the wastelands away from everything in the middle of nowhere in the scorching sun, and this minority group embarrasses the current regime with their success
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orania,_Northern_Cape or just Google Orania.

A new development taking place are SA farmers that are moving into the Congo. That country knows you have to feed your people and SA farmers are the best on the continent but getting the short end of the stick here. They offer them land and help them settling there to get agriculture up and running in their country instead of begging for handouts. Quite a lot of white SA farmers already well settled with quite a large community going at a certain area.

[Alchemy]

The Western Cape is successful and probably why most of the who's who in the financial world resides there. It is run by the opposition party which was "unofficially" a white party when it started but grown into a fully multiracial party it is now. There are some hot spots like the Cape flats where gangsterism and drugs are boss but this was a legacy they inherited from past rule when the won the Western Cape. But make no mistake, the ANC is doing its utmost to try and get this place under their rule because its putting their rule (or lack off) elsewhere in the spotlight. Quite often they (ANC) try to discredit the opposition to gain favor, usually this happens when hell broke out elsewhere in the country with violent protests of poor service delivery by government which is a regular issue over the last year...

As much as I despise the ANC please stop lying! The Cape Flats and all other Townships weren’t inherited by the DA from the ANC,nor are existing conditions there an ANC creation.

In South Africa, the term township and location usually refers to the (often underdeveloped) urban living areas that, from the late 19th century until the end of Apartheid, were reserved for non-whites (black Africans, Coloureds and Indians). Townships were usually built on the periphery of towns and cities.[1][2] The term township also has a distinct legal meaning, in South Africa's system of land title, that carries no racial connotations.

Gangs and Violence

Kids as early as age 12 or 13 will begin the initiation into a local gang. Kids that begin that young have a role model that is a gang, which is the reason for their own induction. Some see violence and gangs as a way of life and a culture. So if their role model is seen doing something wrong they do not see it as a crime but idolized. Without a conviction of the wrongdoers the kids sense of mortality becomes distorted. Some blame the apartheid for leaving a bitter legacy of poverty, inequality, and the nobility of violence.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Township_(South_Africa)

Have you watched City Of god based on the Favelas of Brazil? Note the simmilarities. Townships were CREATED under the apartheid regime where violence and neglect was permitted to thrive through policies like forced removals with the intention of destroying family structures and creating disunity. Seriously, there are hundreds of social studies attributed to this on the web from credible and respected institutions in both the private and academic sectors. It never ceases to amaze me how the ostriches simply cannot, or refuse to understand the repercussions of attempting to socialise people like animals and act all bewildered at the end product of it all, or using the “apartheid ended decades ago” argument. Yes, it did end decades ago and failed policies and leadership is no excuse, but seriously, just open a sociology text book to see what sort of long term effects stuff like this has from a socio economic perspective or on the psychology of these societies. The ANC is a giant fuck up at the moment but please, let’s lay off the propaganda.

[Saffa]

The Western Cape is successful and probably why most of the who's who in the financial world resides there. It is run by the opposition party which was "unofficially" a white party when it started but grown into a fully multiracial party it is now. There are some hot spots like the Cape flats where gangsterism and drugs are boss but this was a legacy they inherited from past rule when the won the Western Cape. But make no mistake, the ANC is doing its utmost to try and get this place under their rule because its putting their rule (or lack off) elsewhere in the spotlight. Quite often they (ANC) try to discredit the opposition to gain favor, usually this happens when hell broke out elsewhere in the country with violent protests of poor service delivery by government which is a regular issue over the last year...

As much as I despise the ANC please stop lying! The Cape Flats and all other Townships weren’t inherited by the DA from the ANC,nor are existing conditions there an ANC creation.

Alchemy, if you read what I wrote carefully the key words were "legacy they inherited from past rule when they won the Western Cape" I did not mentioned the ANC, but referred to the legacy of the apartheid regime. However, the next sentence I mentioned that the ANC is trying it utmost to get rule in the western Cape from the DA....possibly too screw it up like they did with the rest of the country.

[Alchemy]

Alchemy, if you read what I wrote carefully the key words were "legacy they inherited from past rule when they won the Western Cape" I did not mentioned the ANC, but referred to the legacy of the apartheid regime. However, the next sentence I mentioned that the ANC is trying it utmost to get rule in the western Cape from the DA....possibly too screw it up like they did with the rest of the country.

Well the DA won the Western Cape from the ANC, unless im missing something blatantly obvious, hence me questioning the statement.

[Saffa]

Well the DA won the Western Cape from the ANC, unless im missing something blatantly obvious, hence me questioning the statement.

Quite correct
But the Cape flats were already long established and a bad place when the ANC came in power after the 1994 elections and subsequent DA rule that followed soon and that was my point meant with past rule. The Cape Flats and many other similar establishments countrywide were a product of the past Apartheid regime policies and its legacy to those in rule whom followed .
If I was not clear in my original statement, please accept my apologies, but I assumed everyone would be under the impression that past rule would automatically meant the previous government.

[Alchemy]

No problem at all bro, you will find that the majority of the international folk on here are pretty well read on the political climates of many countries, including South Africa with the exception of your far right Ixa esque types who use propoganda from right wing sites as the be all and end all of SA's social ills.

[Magnetonium]

Am I reading this article right? What kind of sick and twisted law would allow police prosecute miners for the murders they didn't actually carry out?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-19424484

South African Marikana miners 'face murder charges'

Workers arrested at South Africa's Marikana mine will be charged shortly with the murder of 34 colleagues shot by police, an official has said.

A prosecuting authority spokesman told the BBC that 270 workers would be tried under the "common purpose" doctrine.

They were in the crowd which confronted the police, who opened fire, sparking a national outcry.

Police have not been charged because a commission of inquiry would investigate their actions, the spokesman said.

Six of the 270 workers remain in hospital, after being wounded in the 16 August shooting.

The other 264 workers are appearing in the Garankuwa magistrates court near the capital, Pretoria.

About 100 people are protesting outside court, demanding their immediate release.

National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesman Frank Lesenyego said they would all face murder charges because they were in the crowd of striking platinum miners, some of whom were armed.

"This is under common law, where people are charged with common purpose," he said.

He said the updated indictments had already been given to the defence and these would be formally delivered to the accused in court, starting on Thursday.

During a visit to the mine after the killings, President Jacob Zuma told workers he "felt their pain" and promised a speedy and thorough investigation of the killings.

Police said they started shooting after being threatened by large groups of miners armed with machetes.

Ten people, including two police officers and two security guards, were killed during the protests before the police shooting.

[Alchemy]

Am I reading this article right? What kind of sick and twisted law would allow police prosecute miners for the murders they didn't actually carry out?

What is your understanding of the events leading up to the Marikana shootings?