Daily Maverick reports that illegal miners (zama zamas), organised under the banner of Mining Affected Communities United in Action (Macua), took to the streets of Pretoria on Tuesday and marched on the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) to deliver a memorandum of demands.
Among their demands were that the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act be scrapped and that zama zamas be decriminalised. “We are here for recognition, to tell (the department) that we also exist, that we are not criminals and that we are not doing anything bad, just trying to provide for our families,” said Mmileng Bairwang, a small-scale miner from Kimberley. He added that they wanted the government to formalise illegal mining and to address the impact of abandoned and unrehabilitated mines. Mineral Regulation Chief director Modilati Malapane accepted the memo on behalf of the minister and assured the marchers that the issues raised would be addressed. Macua gave the department seven days to respond to their demands.
- Read this report by Orateng Lepodise in full at Daily Maverick
- See too, Illegal mining should be made legal, zama zama miners demand, at News24
- And also, Zama zamas betoog vir erkenning, at Netwerk24 (limit on access)
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page