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North West Premier Mme Thandi Modise is saddened by the loss of lives experienced at the Lonmin Mine in Marikana and wishes to convey her condolences to the families of those that lost their lives in the tragic incidents.

“This is the most tragic labour dispute with untold misery that South Africa has ever experienced which could have been avoided had parties involved respected the law. We appeal for calm and for sanity to prevail to avoid further casualties. Survival of the fittest, anarchy and lawlessness shouldn’t characterise wage negotiations in the mining sector. We wish to reiterate our call for cessation of hostilities and for a return to the negotiation table” pleaded Modise.

Modise who together with the MEC for Human Settlements, Public Safety & Liaison, MEC Nono Maloyi will be part of the government delegation visiting the area today says that the provincial government is supporting investigations and intervention aimed at bringing the situation to normality.

The Office of the Premier and South African Police Management (SAPS) have for a while been engaged in negotiations with Lonmin, National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) to broker a solution to avoid the dispute from escalating to the level to which it has deteriorated.