Johannesburg's illegal gold mining indicates State failure
12 September 2016
While we do not condone illegal gold mining, the DA wishes for the speedy rescue of the 51 miners who are reportedly trapped at the Langlaate gold mine and we call on law enforcement to exact the full might of the law on these syndicates who lethally exploit desperate people looking to put food on the table.
To date there has been suspiciously little official action to prevent illegal gold mining in Johannesburg. This will add fuel to allegations of top-level official involvement in gold mining syndicates.
The scale of the disaster at the Langlaagte gold mine is unknown. One report said 51 miners were down the abandoned mine. So far seven are believed dead with others trapped underground. These tragedies will continue until there is credible action by the state to stop illegal mining.
It is easy to see illegal gold mining activity in the area between Langlaagte and Roodepoort. I brought evidence of this to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee three years ago and the following year the committee visited illegal mining sites. This followed by the establishment of a task team involving the Department of Mineral Resources, the SAPS, state intelligence and industry representatives.