Zama zamas spread their roots as illegal mining moves across provinces

The menace of illegal mining has spread from traditional strongholds of Gauteng and North West into other provinces, which experts have blamed on corruption, politically connected kingpins and the incapacity of law-enforcement agencies.

Illegal miners, also known locally as zama zamas, are increasingly tightening their grip on small Mpumalanga mining towns such as Dientjie, Sabie and Pilgrim’s Rest, a picturesque historic gold-mining town protected as a provincial heritage site.

Of grave concern is the level of violent crime that comes with illegal mining operations, with fears that this will not only kill the province’s vibrant tourism industry, but also pose a danger to communities.

He said government had a bad track record in dealing with other forms of crime, and questioned whether the plan wasn’t just more window dressing.

“I guess time will tell if whether this will actually work… I think it remains to be seen what is going to come from the artisanal mining sector that the department is going to establish. I have my doubts,” Petrus said.

He said as long as corruption is still so rife, he has little faith that anything coming from a government department would bear much fruit.

“There is also the problem of corruption, where there are these corrupt law-enforcement officials who may turn a blind eye. Alternatively, you might have senior members in law enforcement who might be paid off,” Petrus added.

A multi-dimensional challenge

The Minerals Council of SA said it was working with mining companies and had heightened their security measures, working in with police to address illegal mining.

Council spokesperson Allan Seccombe said illegal mining was a multi-dimensional challenge that needed to be addressed from a range of perspectives, with a collective and multi-disciplinary approach.

He said the complexity of illegal mining and the transnational trafficking of illegally mined minerals meant no single stakeholder could address it on its own and that collaboration, both locally and internationally, was key.

“The problem is exacerbated with rising unemployment in SA reaching record-high levels. Law enforcement and intelligence networks have limited resources and it is difficult to secure meaningful prosecutions of those involved in illegal mining, particularly those in the upper levels of the criminal syndicates,” Seccombe said.

He said it was difficult to get to the kingpins as the criminal syndicates that buy illegally mined minerals use front companies or legitimate exporters to sell these minerals.

siphom@citizen.co.za