South Africa police fire on striking miners, several dead

[Bosonic]

Source: Reuters

South African police opened fire on Thursday against thousands of striking miners armed with machetes and sticks at Lonmin's Marikana platinum mine, leaving several bloodied corpses lying on the ground.

A Reuters cameraman said he saw at least seven bodies after the shooting, which occurred when police laying out barricades of barbed wire were outflanked by some of an estimated 3,000 miners massed on a rocky outcrop near the mine, 100 km (60 miles) northwest of Johannesburg.

Police officers said talks with leaders of the radical Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) had broken down, leaving no option but to disperse them by force.

"Today is unfortunately D-day," spokesman Dennis Adriao said.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/16/us-safrica-lonmin-bodies-idUSBRE87F0QC20120816

[SoapBox]

1. Joe the Fake Plumber must love this...

just gunning people down.

[Trillo]

2. 3rd paragraph should say,

Radical, right-wing police officers said talks with leaders of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) had broken down, leaving no option but to disperse them by force.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

3. Update - SAPA news agency reports 18 bodies

Breaking News ?@BreakingNews
Update: South Africa's SAPA news agency reports 18 bodies after shooting at platinum mine - @Reuters

[Xithras]

4. There's a video of the shooting. Full auto weapons at very short range. It was brutal.

A group of strikers came around a truck and the police just opened up on them. Well over a hundred bullets fired by dozens of police with sub-machineguns. After the shooting stopped and the dust cleared, they just let them bleed out in the dirt.

This video clearly shows the bodies and is NOT for those with "mild dispositions".

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=bfb_1345136218

[janlyn]

5. Wait to pass judgement

Having viewed the video I will wait to pass judgement until ALL the facts are in...I will say this, after the shooting stops one of the officers goes over to one of the downed individuals and removes a handgun from him...

Is it possible that one of the protesters either pointed a gun or fired a shot at officers?? Of course it is possible..in a mob, Mob mentality rules and things can and do get out of hand quickly..

[Marrah_G]

7. I wish the video showed what led up to it

Regardless it is a horrible video to see and my heart breaks for the families of those men who died.