Rustenburg , South Africa ( CNN ) -- Sibongile Sikhuze pointed to his bandaged right knee , showing where a bullet entered and exited . He then raised his right palm , struck by a rubber bullet when he tried to surrender . `` They ordered us to lie on the ground . People were falling all around me , '' Sikhuze told CNN Saturday , two days after police opened fire on striking miners . `` Another bullet grazed my head . I did n't think I 'd come out alive . That 's why I raised my hands . I thought we would all perish there . We were surrounded by the police . '' Saturday , thousands of people gathered outside the platinum mine , angry about the incident 's toll : 34 mine workers killed , 78 others wounded , 259 arrested on various charges , including malicious damage to property , armed robbery , illegal gathering and possession of weapons . The situation was calm , but tense , as police stood on guard near the protest and helicopters conducted surveillance . Desperate relatives , meanwhile , continued searching for miners who have not been unaccounted for . A day after South African President Jacob Zuma visited the scene of the shootings , a controversial , but popular , politician called on Zuma to resign . `` The minister of police ( Nathi Mthethwa ) must step down because this massacre was committed under his supervision , '' said Julius Malema . `` The same thing with President Zuma . '' Malema , former president of the Youth League of the ruling African National Congress , was banned in April from taking part in party activities after he gave a speech critical of Zuma . He and the youth league helped propel Zuma to power in 2009 . But in recent years Malema has become one of Zuma 's fiercest critics , accusing his administration of failing to improve the lives of the poor . `` A responsible president says to the police you must keep order , but please act with restraint , '' Malema told the crowd . `` He says to them use maximum force . He has presided over the killing of our people , and therefore he must step down . Not even apartheid government killed so many people. `` Police Commissioner Riah Phiyega on Friday said police `` were forced to utilize maximum force to defend themselves . '' Zuma told South Africans that they must come together to overcome national challenges , as they had done before . `` This is not a day to apportion blame , '' Zuma said . `` It is a day for us to mourn together as a nation . It is also a day to start healing . '' The tragedy began unfolding a week ago when miners went on strike demanding pay increases at the mine near Rustenburg , about two hours northwest of Johannesburg . `` When there is a rock fall , it is generally the drillers who are the victims , '' wrote journalist Greg Marinovich in the Daily Maverick newspaper . `` It is the most dangerous job in the business . '' The miners , who earn $ 300 to $ 500 a month , wanted their salaries raised to $ 1,500 . It came as no surprise that their multi-national employer , Lonmin , said no to the whopping increase . The world 's third-largest producer of platinum said the strike was illegal . The violence was believed sparked by a rivalry between two unions that wield a lot of power and influence in South Africa . The unions , accused of trying to outdo each other in negotiating wages , denied instigating the clashes . Tensions at Marikana had mounted throughout the week . The striking miners carried traditional panga machetes and gathered Thursday around a small hill . By then , at least 10 other people were dead from incidents that had occurred in the days before . Among them were two police officers who were hacked to death . Journalists who were at Marikana said police seemed fed up with the miners and determined to resolve the issue . `` Yesterday the police were clear that today we are going to disarm them and remove them from the hill because the gathering is illegal , '' Xolile Mngambi , a reporter for CNN affiliate ETV , said Friday . By Thursday afternoon , another round of negotiations among the striking miners , the unions and Lonmin had failed . A heavily armed police Tactical Response Team moved in to disperse the miners . To hear Phiyega , the police commissioner , describe it , the police weighed all their options and decided to fence in the miners with barbed wire -- to compartmentalize them into more manageable groups . `` The armed protesters moved toward the police , '' she said . `` They were driven back with tear gas and rubber bullets . But when they fired , police used maximum force . '' But journalists at the scene could not say whether the protesters fired first . `` We can not say to you the police were provoked , '' Mngambi said . Then , the police unleashed a barrage of gunfire . One witness said it went on for three minutes . CNN 's Moni Basu and Faith Karimi contributed to this report .
Prominent politician calls on South African president to resign . The country's main opposition party says it will not support Zuma if he resigns over the scandal. Police say they fired at the striking workers in self-defense . 44 people were killed this week in violence at the mine -- 34 on Thursday .