Security forces in South Africa have intensified efforts to curtail illegal mining activities. On Thursday (Dec. 14), a joint operation involving the army and police conducted searches in the Soul City settlement near Kagiso, west of Johannesburg, where they seized mining equipment, as witnessed by AFP reporters.
The provincial police commissioner reported that over two days, more than 70 individuals, primarily undocumented migrants, were apprehended in the vicinity, which is situated near abandoned gold mines. Some of the arrests were related to drug dealing and the possession of illegal firearms.
Rampant crime, coupled with high unemployment and illegal immigration, has emerged as a prominent political concern in the lead-up to the forthcoming general elections next year.
During a passing out ceremony for 1,400 new police recruits in the central city of Kimberly on Thursday, President Cyril Ramaphosa conveyed the nation’s weariness with crime. He disclosed that since the initiation of a crackdown on criminality in May, authorities had made over 250,000 arrests and seized 3,200 firearms.
Informally referred to as “zama zamas” (“those who try” in the Zulu language), numerous informal miners operate in mineral-rich South Africa. The Johannesburg region, in particular, is marked by slag heaps, shafts, and deep trenches left by generations of miners whose arrival during a gold rush in the 1880s led to the establishment of the city.
Many informal miners, often hailing from other countries, endure challenging living and working conditions in clandestine pits. Locals perceive their activities as a source of criminality. Additionally, access to old mines is frequently controlled by gangs that engage in territorial disputes.
