POLICE Minister Bheki Cele has sent specialised units to Riverlea in Joburg to address illegal mining activities.
This comes after a protest erupted in the area on Monday, 31 July following the discovery of five bodies of illegal miners.
The men were linked to a shoot-out between rival groups of illegal miners in Riverlea and the nearby Zamimpilo squatter camp.
“These specialised units are being brought in to ensure we apprehend these illegal miners and put a stop to these illegal operations. Our focus is to ensure law and order is restored in this area.
“We cannot have a situation where communities live in fear. We are going to deal decisively with these criminals," Cele said.
He emphasised the importance of law and order in the area and assured the residents that the police were devising strategies and operational plans to ficht illegal mining operations in various provinces.
DA member of parliament the party's shadow minister of environmental affairs, forestry and fisheries, James Lorimer, said the issue of illegal mining doesn't affect those who live in Riverlea, but those at their informal settlement.
ALSO READ: Gatvol residents demand MOTLAKASE!
He said that residents are tired of the violence and want the Zamimpilo squatter camp moved.
"The settlement was built near a fuel pipeline and if the illegal mining activity breaks through the pipeline, hundreds of people will die," Lorimer said.
The Minerals Council of South Africa has acknowledged the unprecedented crisis in crime in the mining sector, resulting in the deaths of mine employees and illegal miners.
In 2022, at the height of the illegal mining saga, the council noted the negative impacts of the activities on nearby communities.
This includes rape, murder, violence, intimidation, prostitution, child abuse, collusion in criminal activities, human trafficking, extortion, and the degradation of the quality of life and societal values.
According to Gauteng police spokeswoman Brigadier Athlenda Mathe, between 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023, 1 199 illegal miners were arrested.
She said police had seized R1,8 million in cash, 9 991 rounds of ammunition, 177 vehicles, seven trucks, 771 digging tools, five tractor-loader-backhoes, as well as 233 phendukas (a refining machine).
