Botswana miners 'face dismissal'

Botswana's diamond supply half the state's revenues

An illegal diamond miners' pay strike in Botswana has forced the closure of one mine, a spokesman for Debswana Diamond Company has said.

Strikers who fail to return to work are risking immediate dismissal, Debswana employee relations manager Jacob Sesinyi told the BBC.

Debswana, jointly owned by De Beers and the government, has four diamond mines, equal to 30% of Botswana's economy.

The miners' union is claiming to have lost control of its members, he said.

The firm has turned to the BMWU national executive after the union's local committee said it could not prevent its members from striking, said Mr Sesinyi.

"We are prepared to meet as soon as possible, maybe tomorrow," he told BBC News Online on Monday.

Minor impact

The strike forced the temporary closure of two of the firm's major mines - its flagship Jwaneng mine and Letlhakane mine - on Sunday night, but Debswana expects both to be fully operational again by the end of Monday.

Diamond mining dwarf the rest of the economy

The firm is unlikely to be crippled by the forced closure of Damtshaa, a small, newly opened mine that supplied a mere 292,000 of the 30 million carats in diamonds Debswana mined last year.

At least 1,500 workers have failed to clock on, out of 5,400 union members, according to the company's figures.

Local union officials have painted a sharply different picture, saying 6,000 workers have downed tools.

"Everything is at a standstill in all four mines," the Agence France Presse news agency reported local BMWU official Jack Tlhagale as saying.

The diamond industry is crucial for Botswana's economy.

Debswana provides 70% of the southern African country's foreign exchange earnings, half of government revenue and 30% of the country's gross domestic product, according to the firm's website.

"I would not be surprised if from tomorrow people will be served with letters encouraging them to go to work or they will be dismissed," said Mr Sesinyi.

Botswana's Industrial Court ruled on 6 August that the pay strike would be illegal.

The union is demanding a 16% pay rise, and 24% bonus for 2004/5, substantially more than management's offer of 10% in each category.

The firm argues that it is already the highest paying company in Botswana, and that its overall remuneration package includes free housing and transport, subsidised water, power and schooling and free medical insurance.

"It doesn't happen anywhere else in Botswana apart from Debswana mine, it doesn't even happen in South Africa," the company's spokesman said.