‘Smoke out’ remarks reflection of govt attitude – GIWUSA

On Wednesday, Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni warned that the government would not assist the scores of illegal miners who remained underground in Stilfontein and that the police would "smoke out" illegal miners.

GIWUSA president president Mametlwe Sebei said Ntshavheni’s remarks reflect the attitude of South Africa’s government.

“The utterances of the minister in the presidency epitomises the attitude government had taken initially on the situation, and if it was up to them and they were not called out, we would have hundreds of bodies coming underground.”

Law enforcement crime-fighting efforts of blocking food access routes to illegal miners have come under fire, with many calling them inhumane.

Police have since supplied 600 packets of instant porridge and water after the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) challenged their efforts to block food access.

Sebei said the lack of food provision is more serious than widely reported, revealing that some miners have not had food for over a month.

“The police cut the supply of food, water and medication for three months, so a lot of these people have not eaten in over a month. So, they are too weak even to walk, and that’s partly the reason even pulling them out is an enormous effort.”

Sebei said that the abandonment of mines by large corporations is a key driver of illegal mining in the country.

He also said the abandonment has left former workers and communities starving, forcing them to exploit remaining minerals, adding that high-ranking individuals are involved in illegal mining, as the miners lack access to international markets where the minerals are exported.

“How do you think those extremely dehydrated workers resurfacing are able to export gold from Stilfontein to the ports and to Britain or everywhere else where these things are traded without the police being involved at the very high level in that movement?”

Sebei said nationalising the sector is the only solution, blaming the ANC-led government for the dire state of the mining sector.

“The politicians, particularly the ANC politicians, are covering up for the industrial looting of the country’s minerals. The solution is to bring the mining industry under public ownership and make sure that we beneficiate minerals in this country in order to create industries and jobs to eliminate unemployment and poverty,”  said Sebei. 

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