S. African govt welcomes mine peace accord

JOHANNESBURG - The Lonmin's Marikana mine peace accord paved the way for endorsing an environment of social harmony and peace, the South African government said on Thursday.

The Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on Marikana tragedy welcomed the signing of a peace accord between unions and Lonmin mine management.

IMC was appointed by South African President Jacob Zuma to coordinate and lead government support following the death of 44 people during a violent strike at Lonmin Marikana mine last month.

A peace accord was signed by three labor unions namely Solidarity, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), United Association of South Africa (UASA) and Lonmini management early on Thursday.

"This lays a firm foundation for the beginning of the eliminations of violence and intimidation as well as a return to work," Lonmin mine said in a statement.

"We congratulate the negotiating team for having come this far and call on all stakeholders to stay committed to finding a peaceful resolution and fulfilling the commitments agreed to in the peace accord," said Chairperson of the IMC, Minister in The Presidency Collins Chabane.

However, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) and representatives of the miners delegation did not sign the accord.

The IMC urged those mediating in the standoff to continue until a solution is found.

"The committee has noted the concerns raised by other stakeholders who have not yet signed and wish to encourage all parties to conclude the peace accord in order to move forward with the negotiations," IMC said in the statement.

It also thanked other labor movements who are working hard to ensure that Marikana returns to peace.

The committee also called on the mines and their workers to both play their part in ensuring that the mines remain productive and competitive.

"The improvement of conditions for workers should be viewed within the context of the country's efforts to address poverty, unemployment and social inequality," it said.

"Decent working conditions and the maintenance of labor peace are equally vital in our efforts to grow the economy and create more jobs," the committee added.

Under the peace accord, all parties committed themselves to creating a peaceful working environment as a way of leveling the ground for wage negotiations.

Since August10 the miners at the Marikana mine have been demanding a rise of their monthly pay from 4,000 rand to 12,500 rand (from about 480 to 1,500 U.S. dollars).

Work attendance at the mine remained below two percent on Thursday.