South African police announced on Sunday, the arrest of 225 illegal miners who were compelled to emerge from an abandoned mine shaft due to severe shortages of food and water.
The miners, referred to locally as “zama zamas” (meaning “those who try” in Zulu), surfaced from a mine located in Orkney, a gold mining town in the Klerksdorp district of North West Province.
A police spokesperson confirmed the arrests, stating that the miners were driven out “as a result of starvation and dehydration” after security forces blocked routes that accomplices used to supply them with food and water.
Authorities are continuing to monitor the abandoned mine shafts, noting that “more and more illegal miners are resurfacing.”
According to a statement released late Saturday, these 225 individuals are part of a larger group believed to number in the hundreds, if not thousands, who remain trapped underground.
Lieutenant General Shadrack Sibiya, Acting National Commissioner of the South African Police Service, revealed that over 13,691 suspected illegal miners have been apprehended across seven provinces since December 2023.
“We have seized R5 million (approximately $283,000) in cash and uncut diamonds valued at R32 million (around $1.8 million),” he stated.
The issue of illegal mining is pervasive in South Africa, with thousands of miners, many from other countries, operating in the nation’s mineral-rich areas under perilous conditions.
Their activities not only challenge legitimate mining companies but are also viewed as a source of crime and insecurity by local communities.
AFP
