South Africa denies aid to illegal miners – DW – 14/11/2024

The South African government says it is not prepared to help the approximately 4,000 illegal miners believed to be in an abandoned mine in the North West province.

Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told a media briefing on Wednesday that the government would not send aid to the illegal miners – known locally as ‘zama zamas’ – because they are involved in a criminal act.

‘We’re going to smoke them out’ – Minister

“We are not sending help to criminals. We are going to smoke them out. They will come out. Criminals should not be helped; criminals should be prosecuted. We did not send them there,” Ntshavheni said.

South African publication Daily Maverick quoted mine safety analysts as doubting the number of ‘zama zamas’ underground, saying as many as 2,000 was ‘more plausible’.

The miners are in a shaft in Stilfontein, a mining town about 155 kilometers southwest of Johannesburg.

They are believed to be running low on food and water after authorities curtailed their supply lines with the intention of forcing them to the surface.

More than 1,000 arrests

In recent weeks, more than a thousand people have resurfaced and been arrested by police as part of their ‘Vala Umgodi’ – or ‘Close the Gap’ operation.

South Africa’s Department of Police and the Department of Defense planned to visit the North West province to meet with local authorities to review operations around the Stilfontein mine and “assess challenges and develop appropriate responses”.

“SAPS (the South African Police Service) remains steadfast in its commitment to maintaining law and order and urges all remaining illegal miners to heed police calls to resurface,” it said South African Police Department in a statement.

Illegal mining in South Africa

South Africa was once the world’s largest gold producer, but that number has been declining in recent decades. A number of former mining operations have now been abandoned and fallen into disrepair.

Thousands of illegal miners traverse these closed mines in search of gold and other minerals, a practice considered extremely dangerous due to the condition of the mines.

Last June, at least 31 people were killed in a closed mine in the Free State province after a methane explosion.

Many come from the neighboring countries of Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Lesotho, among others.

They often work in dangerous conditions, but many of the miners themselves are considered dangerous by South African authorities.

There have been numerous cases where illegal miners have been suspected of involvement in violent crimes, including murders, robberies and rapes.

There are also field wars in which heavily armed ‘zama zamas’ fight rival groups and often take on local authorities themselves.

kb/lo (AP, DW sources)