Security forces say the integrated deployment aims to dismantle illegal mining syndicates, curb gang violence and restore order in affected communities
National police commissioner Fannie Masemola said the army would play a supporting role to the South African Police Service
The acting police minister also stressed the need to tackle organised crime, which President Cyril Ramaphosa last week singled out as ‘the most immediate threat to our democracy,…
Democratic Alliance leader John Steenhuisen said much of the progress made ‘bears the unmistakable imprint of the DA’s principled participation’ in the government of national unity
Human trafficking, cybercrime, drug routes and wildlife poaching are surging as South Africa becomes a regional crime hub
Out of poverty people have turned to illegal mining, destroying not only the forests but also farmlands and waterways
The single narrative of these miners as criminals in mainstream and social media ‘makes our recognition of our equal humanity difficult’
Association says the government does not ‘have the will to act’ and the solution is regulation to allow artisanal miners to work legally
With just 62 wardens to cover some 14,000 hectares, it’s an arduous game of cat and mouse
Army clampdown has led to assaults and the property of legal miners being confiscated
SAPS says it has heightened visible policing over the Heritage Day weekend
Road and water infrastructure, largely in the central, south and west of Johannesburg, is being damaged
The displacement of illegal artisanal mining gangs by the police causes the miners to flee to other areas, resulting in violent turf wars that spill over into neighbouring areas
The effect of illegal mining includes sabotaged pipelines that contaminate the environment, illegal water usage, sinkholes, underground fires and explosions
They scour mine dumps on the West Rand for gold
The informal economy around zama zama mining has replaced that of large-scale mining companies that have abandoned or closed their mines
The dark and dangerous world fuels international criminal syndicates that control the illicit gold economy and as organised crime grips the country, it infiltrates our political…
Nitrate oxide from gas cylinders is believed to be the cause of the explosion
Ramaphosa calls on the private sector and labour to work with Transnet and the government to fix escalating problems
Castigating, rather than encouraging, business leaders when they advocate for harsh interventions sets us all back
