The illegal miners’ home countries should be held accountable for repatriating their bodies, while the government should be blamed for the deaths of the miners in the North West.
African Transformation Movement (ATM) leader Vuyolwethu Zungula expressed these views during an interview with Sunday World on Thursday.
Police say most of the illegal miners hail from Mozambique, Lesotho, and Zimbabwe, with a negligible number of those involved in illegal mining being South Africans.
Zungula emphasised the need for a comprehensive investigation and for those who failed in their duties to secure borders and rehabilitate mines to face legal action.
He called for the government to be held accountable for all lives lost as a result of illegal mining operations.
He made it clear that the first thing to take into account when attempting to address illegal mining was illegal immigration.
According to Zungula, the majority of these illegal miners are from Mozambique, as discovered by the recent rescues at the Buffelsfontein Gold Mine in Stilfontein.
However, the two nations have not met to discuss this matter.
14-year-old illegal immigrant
“I don’t know what the government is planning to do with these dead bodies, but we, as the ATM, would appreciate mechanisms that will go as far as arresting the kingpins,” he said.
“In one instance, the police caught a 14-year-old illegal immigrant. This is a child; he knows nothing about mining.
“When you ask how he got here, he would say his uncle brought him. When you ask the uncle, he will name someone else. The naming should be all the way to the kingpin.”
He emphasised the need for the government to strengthen border security in order to prevent unauthorised entry into South Africa.
This involves increasing the number of personnel and resources available in border regions to enforce immigration laws.
According to ATM spokesperson Zama Ntshona, law enforcement officials ought to be prepared to handle the intricacies of illicit mining operations.
“The negligence of not holding companies that were operating in these mines accountable for rehabilitating the old and abandoned mines presents another layer of this multifaceted issue,” said Ntshona.
“The lack of urgency in addressing these sites poses environmental risks and allows illegal mining to flourish, exacerbating the challenges faced by local communities and the nation as a whole.”
Over 200 illegal miners rescued
Sunday World previously reported that Mines Rescue Services had called off the extraction operation.
This comes after the most recent rescue effort discovered that the shaft was deserted and that no human remains were still underground.
A total of 246 illegal miners were rescued during the Monday–Wednesday operation. The bodies of 78 illegal miners were found at Shaft 11 of the former Buffelsfontein gold mine.
The numbers include 128 Mozambicans, 80 Lesotho nationals, 33 Zimbabweans, and five South Africans.
