South Africa blockades illegal miners hiding underground

The country’s Ministry of Police and Ministry of Defense on Thursday oversaw efforts to draw illegal miners out of a closed mine in the North West Province. About 4,000 gold miners are inside a mineshaft in the city of Stilfontein where they were working illegally. Trying to force the miners above ground, police cut off the entrances used to deliver supplies. Cabinet Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni on Wednesday said the government would not send help to the miners because they are involved in criminal activity. Local residents have helped bring some miners out of that mineshaft so far. During a larger government crackdown, over 1,000 miners have surfaced from mines across the region in recent weeks.

How long has the operation been going? The standoff between police and the miners is part of the government’s larger Vala Umgodi, or Close the Hole, operation. It began in May 2023 and aims to end illegal mining by forcing workers out of abandoned shafts by cutting off their supplies. Illegal mining has increased in the country as gold mines have closed and local and immigrant workers continue working in the closed shafts. Authorities say larger crime syndicates often employ the workers to mine in dangerous conditions.

Once miners exit the shafts, police arrest them, charge them with illegal mining, and determine if they are in the country legally. Police are hesitant to enter the mines and worry that some miners may be armed. Meanwhile, some miners have reportedly died amid the standoffs and others are weak and require medical attention when they exit the mines.

Dig deeper: Read Josh Schumacher’s report about miners who were murdered in Pakistan.