Johannesburg - South African President Jacob Zuma will cut short his visit to Mozambique for a regional summit Friday so he can
visit the area where up to 36 striking miners were killed in a clash with police.

 
"Zuma is to cut short his attendance of the... summit in Maputo, Mozambique in order to visit Rustenburg this afternoon," his spokesman Mac Maharaj said in a statement.

 
"A dispute at the Lonmin Marikana mine in Rustenburg has claimed several lives since last week, culminating in the tragic shooting of armed protesting strikers yesterday," Maharaj said.

 
"The president is concerned about the violent nature of the protest, especially given that the Constitution and labour laws allow enough avenues to deal with issues, and is sympathetic to calls for a commission of inquiry."

 
Zuma was in Maputo to brief the 15-nation Southern African Development Community on developments in neighbouring Zimbabwe and in Madagascar, where he has been mediating efforts to end protracted political crises.