There were 460 convictions on cases of illegal mining activity a year ago.
This is according to the National Prosecuting Authority’s annual report from April 2022 to March 2023 which shows that convictions were at their highest in February 2023 with 60 cases.
This is a mere reflection of the scale of illegal mining in the country which has once again come under the spotlight following the deaths of 17 people at Angelo informal settlement in Boksburg, East Rand, following a gas leak.
Gauteng police said the leak was linked to illegal mining activity in the settlement.
Illegal mining activities have also been associated with rampant crime in communities across the country with cases of rape, robberies, hijacking of buildings and mass murders being reported.
Some of the high-profile cases linked to illegal mining include:
- The Mdlalose mass shooting where 16 people were killed in a tavern in Soweto in what was believed to be a zama-zama turf war;
- The Krugersdorp gang rapes where a film crew was attacked, robbed and some raped allegedly by illegal miners; and
- A balaclava-clad gang known as Marashea made up of people from Lesotho who are identified by blankets they wear over their shoulders terrorising the community of West Rand in Mohlakeng, Purification farm and Randfontein, demanding electronic gadgets and cash from the homeowners.
In areas such as Roodepoort, residents live in fear of the zama-zamas even resorting to arming themselves for protection from any attacks.
Crime linked to illegal mining has been classified as an economic sabotage by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
There have been several calls from communities affected by crimes linked to illegal mining for the army to be deployed in these areas.
In an interview with 702 on Thursday morning, Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi said deploying the army would be a mission.
“I am not even trying to undermine the army, but the truth is legislatively they are hamstrung.”
Lesufi explained that to deploy the army, Ramaphosa first has to write to parliament, certain protocols had to be followed and only thereafter would soldiers be deployed as a backup for the police.
This means the army would be unable to respond fast enough to a situation on the ground.
Lesufi acknowledged that government strategies to fight illegal mining are not working.
“We really believe that we need a huge overhaul on how this problem of illegal activities started taking place. I really don’t think the strategies we have as government are assisting us, and we have made that quite clear to those that are dealing with law-enforcement in our country.
“We are just under siege and I don’t think that we’ve got a plan either to reverse or to confront or to deal with. If we are trying as a province to really fight crime, fight lawlessness, and anarchy we just need resources either on local or provincial government.”
Meanwhile, Ramaphosa in 2022 said the National Security Council had agreed on further action to tackle illegal mining, and that the SA National Defence Force could be called to support the SAPS should it be required.
According to SAPS annual performance plan 2022/23, specialised interventions capability to combat illegal mining will be measured in terms of its response to identified illegal mining operations, which pose a threat to the economy and undermine the authority of the state.
sibiyan@sowetan.co.za
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