Amplats platinum giant fires 12,000 S. African miners amid strike

PanARMENIAN.Net - The world's biggest platinum producer, Anglo American Platinum, has fired 12,000 striking South African miners after a protracted strike over wages, BBC News said.

Amplats said three weeks of illegal strikes by 28,000 workers in Rustenburg had cost it 39,000 ounces in output - or 700m rand ($82.3m; £51m) in revenue.

South African mining has been hit by a wave of wildcat strikes, in which miners and officials have been killed.

Thirty-four platinum miners were shot dead by police on 16 August.

A separate strike is continuing at another mining firm, GoldFields, which is the world's fourth-largest gold miner.

Earlier GoldFields evicted 5,000 striking employees from company dormitories, saying they were intimidating fellow workers.

In all, about 75,000 miners are currently on strike in the gold and platinum sectors, most of them illegally, analysts say.

With unemployment in South Africa already at 25%, the mass dismissal will deal a blow both to the country's weak economic growth and to President Jacob Zuma's reputation as leader, analysts say.

His governing ANC party is holding a leadership contest in December, and some members are already calling for Mr Zuma to be replaced by his deputy, Kgalema Motlanthe.