Zwane urges unified fight against illegal mining

The illegal miners were said to have been trapped in the Johannesburg's oldest and disused gold mine at George Harrison Park since last Wednesday. Picture: Ilanit Chernick

The illegal miners were said to have been trapped in the Johannesburg's oldest and disused gold mine at George Harrison Park since last Wednesday. Picture: Ilanit Chernick

Published Sep 12, 2016

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Johannesburg - In the wake of the latest illegal mining tragedy, mineral resources minister Mosebenzi Zwane is calling on all stakeholders to eradicate the scourge.

Zwane’s plea comes after a number of illegal miners were trapped underground, at an abandoned mine in Langlaagte, Johannesburg. The mine, at George Harrison Park, is where gold was first discovered in Johannesburg, but it was last used 50 years ago and has been abandoned since.

The minister called on all stakeholders to work together to eradicate illegal mining in Gauteng, which - as the initial heart of mining in SA - is especially targeted

Zwane also said rescue teams will this afternoon assess the levels of carbon dioxide underground to see if rescue operations can carry on.

Over the weekend, a decision was made to halt rescue operations because it was feared the rescuers may be harmed.

Read also:  Cosatu seeks action after Langlaagte incident

The department is working together with law enforcement agencies to ensure that perpetrators are brought to book. So far, more than 800 arrests have been made and weekly disruptive operations are being undertaken.

Over 200 holes have been closed by the department and mining companies, which cuts off illegal access to disused mining operations.

"One of our biggest tasks is to get to the syndicates behind these operations, as well as the markets they're supplying," Zwane says.

Meanwhile, the Congress of South African Trade Unions has called on government to legalise independent small-scale mining as a solution to the growing illegal mining activity.

Cosatu said on Monday that the focus on illegal mining as a crime ignores the broader realities of many unemployed people who are desperate to make a living.

“The federation is calling on the Chamber of Mines and the government to explore the possibility of legalising and regulating the small-scale mining, as a way for minimising dangers and also removing the elements that send some of these desperate people underground, without taking any safety precautions,” said Cosatu’s Sizwe Pamla in a statement.

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