South African police kill 34 protesters

[Graham]

Still ok for me.

[Thraex]

Video works fine. You would think with white cops on scene the police would have a bit more discipline but I guess not. :\ The cops look horrendously trained and ill-prepared in handling unruly crowds. I guess we are fortunate that no riots happened during the World Cup otherwise bloody massacres would have been certain!

[Loki]

I can't see the video anymore - I get a "bad gateway". Anyone else experiencing this?

Works again now for me.

[derLowe]

You can see the killings here (graphic, be warned):

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

There is another side of the story every one is silent about. A day prior to the shoot out the miners decapitated/dismembered some Policemen and took their weapons, those same weapons were used the following day in the attack on the police.

Perhaps this is the reason why the cops looked as frightened as they did.

[Óttar]

I saw a documentary on the new 'shoot to kill' policy in SA. The police in South Africa have implemented 'Extraordinary Powers' allowing them to use force due to the unusually high and heinous crime rate. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

[Mago]

There is another side of the story every one is silent about. A day prior to the shoot out the miners decapitated/dismembered some Policemen and took their weapons, those same weapons were used the following day in the attack on the police...

If that's the case then they had a legitimate concern for their safety and had to open fire. I read that some demonstrators holding clubs and machetes rushed at a line of police officers, giving them no other choice. i didn't hear about this in the us media news, weird.

"South Africa is the most dangerous country in the world, which is not at war." quote from BBC

[Matritensis]

Watching the video now. An example of 'Overkill'.

The rates at which they are payed is crap for mining Platinum. I sympathise to that point.

I don't think it's really overkill.Once at close range a machete is every bit as dangerous as a gun,and can normally disable anyone even faster,so nobody is going to wait until they get close.The video below shows my point (caution,graphic) The policeman at 1:45 thought he could approach the guy and paid with his life.

[YOUTUBE]F3LpYN9777U[/YOUTUBE]

[Incal]

I don't think it's really overkill.Once at close range a machete is every bit as dangerous as a gun,and can normally disable anyone even faster,so nobody is going to wait until they get close.The video below shows my point (caution,graphic) The policeman at 1:45 thought he could approach the guy and paid with his life.

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3LpY...has_verified=1[/YOUTUBE]

Shit no wonder why Nicaragua is no Man's Land with such a lame Police Force.

[Incal]

Regarding the original video it's sad they only captured the shooting part and not what happened before to get an idea of the whole situation.

[Kazimiera]

This is very, very sad. And it makes me very angry how people are being exploited by capitalists. This has everything to do with greed.

Imagine working 10 hours a day, 1-2km underground in some or the most dangerous conditions on earth. Your chances of dying increase every day you go down there. And imagine getting $350 a month for your efforts (which is what these guys are getting paid). They work for the richest mega-corporations in the world. These mines gross trillions of dollars every year and they cannot afford to grant their workers a raise??

And then they get shot at for being pissed off. There's justice for you.

Hacking up cops and shooting down crowds, one as equally wrong at the other. But inspired by what exactly? Pure, corporate, capitalist greed. I hope the CEO's choke to death on their Sunday roast.

Those mines should be nationalised.