Brand South Africa calls for calm

Brand South Africa also welcomed government's decision to put in place measures to assure South African citizens of their rights to security from acts of intimidation, threats and violence resulting from the recent protests that have engulfed the mining communities in the country.

"Our country has come a long way from a brutal and painful past. We emerged with a dream of a rainbow nation in a democratic country that promises all its citizens safety and security," said Brand South Africa spokesperson Nomsa Chabeli Mazibuko.

"The Marikana tragedy may have reminded us of old wounds; as a people we need to follow in the footsteps of our Tata Nelson Mandela and vow that never again will we let differences drive a wedge between the people to the point of bloodshed and living in fear.

"We all have a collective responsibility to work towards building a South Africa that is secure and remains attractive to local and foreign investors; visitors and businesses, whose contribution to tackling the challenges of poverty and inequality are crucial for economic growth," Mazibuko said.

She said Brand South Africa hoped that the outstanding issues in the on-going negotiations would be speedily resolved in order to return this very important sector of the economy to productivity and stability.