RUSTENBURG: South African inquiry investigating a police crackdown that killed 34 platinum miners was postponed on Wednesday to allow victims' families to travel to the hearings.
The Marikana Commission of Inquiry delayed reports from police forensic experts and crime scene investigators after lawyers argued that victims' families had a right to hear evidence.
"While expedition is important, there should be a level of sensitivity," said Dumisa Ntsebeza, representing around 20 victims' families.
"It can't be correct that we inquire into the dead and their families are not here."
Many of the miners hail from South Africa's Eastern Cape province, hundreds of miles away from the northwestern Rustenburg town where the hearing is taking place.
Some have not even access to TV and had not seen the video footage of the killings, said Ntsebeza.
Authorities will fund families' travels to the town.Former Supreme Court of Appeal judge Ian Farlam set down the next hearing date on October 22.
Farlam said waiting for the arrival of the slain miners' relatives could also give the commission more time to obtain media footage it has requested.
"I made an appeal to the representatives of the media, .but I understand there has not been full response to that," he said.
Dali Mpofu, representing the 270 miners who were briefly arrested and charged with the murder of their own colleagues under an obscure "common purpose doctrine," warned that "haste may result in us having a half-baked and rushed product".
"There is nobody in this country who is more keen for the finalisation of this commission than the victims," he said.
Renowned human rights lawyer George Bizos added his voice to support the postponement of the hearing of police evidence.
"We don't want to deprive the families of any of their fundamental rights," said Bizos.
On day three of the deliberations over the August 16 violence, the commission did receive post-mortem reports for 33 of the 34 miners killed by police.
One of the reports was not yet ready, while two of those turned in still required identification.
On Tuesday, Farlam toured the dusty plateau region where 34 miners were gunned down by police on August 16 in the bloodiest day of violence seen in the country since the end of apartheid.
Violence at mining giant Lonmin's Marikana site, in which 46 people died over the course of six weeks of unrest, was sparked by a stand-off between miners and mine owners over pay.
That strike ended with a hefty pay rise for Lonmin's 28,000 workers and prompted a wave of strikes in the mining sector.
Also on Wednesday, police tried to contain tensions at the Gold Fields mine in Carletonville west of Johannesburg where 15,000 miners refused to return to work.
"About 2,000 miners are still gathered at the mountain," said police spokeswoman Busi Menoe. "The situation is still tense."
Around 5,400 workers at Harmony Gold's Carletonville mine downed tools from Tuesday night, while 300 miners went on strike at Anglo American's Khumba Iron Ore mine in the west of the country, spokespeople said.
Gold One also suspended up to 1,400 workers who failed to turn up for work on Wednesday.
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