Paul Mashatile urges illegal miners in Stilfontein to come out voluntarily

Deputy President Paul Mashatile has called on illegal miners underground in Stilfontein, North West, to come out voluntarily.

He emphasised the government does not have equipment to force miners out, and said police are prepared to handle the situation when they resurface and avoid any harm to the miners.

“Government's position is to urge them to come out. We don't have things to smoke people out,” said Mashatile.

This follows remarks by minister in the presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, who said the government would not attempt to rescue the miners but would use strategies to “smoke them out” and deal with those who have broken the law.

Mashatile reiterated the government's priority is to respect human rights.

“We respect life. South Africa is based on the culture of human rights. We respect the Bill of Rights,” he said.

The crisis began with Operation Vala Umgodi, a national crackdown on illegal mining, in Orkney earlier this month. Thousands of miners stayed underground, apparently because they feared being arrested if they emerged.

According to Wessels Morweng, North West MEC for community safety and transport management, more than 1,259 illegal miners have resurfaced from the Stilfontein mine, of which at least:

• 871 are Mozambican;
• 343 are Zimbabwean;
• 33 are from Lesotho;
• one is Malawian; and
• 10 are South African. 

The authorities have divided the operation into three phases:

• phase 1, which cleared boulders at the mine shaft entrance, was completed last week;
• phase 2 involved assessing the shaft’s conditions using advanced equipment, including a camera to detect harmful gases; and
• phase 3 will focus on safely bringing all miners to the surface.

The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria has ordered the Stilfontein mine, where hundreds of illegal miners are reported to be trapped, to be opened to emergency services. 

TimesLIVE