In a horrendous mining massacre that shook South Africa guards gunned down four illegal miners at the Aurora company mine. The mine located east of Johannesburg is jointly owned by Nelson Mandela's grandson Zondwa Mandela and President Zuman's nephew Khulubuse Zuma.
Jannie van Aswegen the police warrant officer said that four bodies have been recovered from the mine shaft. The mine was one of many that they bought from an insolvent company and the two high profile owners are currently embroiled in a pay dispute with the workers that they inherited.
Thulane Ngubane of Aurora stated that the shooting happened one day after illegal miners kidnapped one security guard and killed another at the Grootvlei gold mine owned by Aurora. The mine is located 40 km east of Johannesburg at Springs, Ekurhuleni.
South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers said that it was shocked and that it would be sending in its own investigation team to probe the incident.
A spokesman of the Congress of South African Trade Unions, Patrick Craven said that while they did not condone illegal mining, the brutal response meted out by the security guards was not justified.