Swedish Transport Workers Union condemns the massacre of South African miners

The Congress of Sweden’s transport workers’ union, meeting in the city of Örebro in August, condemned the massacre of Marikana platinum miners by the South African police. Below you can read the full text of the Congress statement. Also, follow this link to sign the petition of the campaign in support of Marikana miners: Solidarity with Labor in South Africa

International Labour Solidarity Committee - Iran

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INTERNATIONAL PETITION OF SOLIDARITY FOR SOUTH AFRICAN MINEWORKERS

Statement from the Swedish Transport Workers Union

We workers and union activists strongly condemn the massacre of Marikana platinum miners in South Africa by the police on August 16th. This was a sheer barbarity and a crime against humanity - a massacre of defenceless workers who just demanded a wage increase. All evidence points toward a planned attack on the strikers by the police and employer. No excuses justify this act of brutality against workers. We call upon all international workers and trade unionists and all people of the world to protest and condemn this barbarity by the South African police and employer.

We demand that:

1- The identity of all the murdered miners should be publicized as soon as possible. All arrested workers and protesters must be released immediately.

2- All authorities and individuals who were in any level involved in this mass killing from decision making to organizing and shooting; should be put on trial in a public court.

3- The miners and families of all the victims should have access to free legal defence and judicial consultation during this trial.

4- All families of the victims should immediately receive financial support at reasonable standard for the remainder of their whole lives.

5- All injured miners should have access to free and high quality medical treatment and should receive their full wage until they have completely recovered.

6- Marikana platinum miners were demanding a raise of wages when they were brutally attacked by the police. This mass killing should not overshadow the miners wage demand. We support The Marikana miner´s wage increase.

Swedish Transport Workers Union

Örebro, Sweden, August 2012