By Mark Ogagan
Three teenagers are among the illegal miners (Zama Zamas) arrested in Stilfontein, in South Africa’s North West, on Thursday afternoon.
They are a part of 17 zama zamas who resurfaced from an abandoned gold mine in the area.
The arrests come as police intensify their bid to clamp down on illegal mining in parts of the country.
Operation Vala Umgodi was launched in December 2024 which saw food, water and medical supplies to the illegal miners being cut off in a bid to force them back up to the surface.
The three teens waiting to be processed said it took them days to make their way to the shaft exit.
Aged between 16 and 19, they said it was the first time they’d seen daylight since May.
Hungry and dehydrated, they added that the sight of the piercing light at the end of the tunnel was a sight for sore eyes.
Adding to claims by other illegal miners who resurfaced recently, they said that armed BaSotho guards made escaping near impossible.
Bust lips, grazed skin, blisters on their hands and torn clothes were only a small indication of the hard labour they say they endured.
The three boys and the other 14-year-old arrested at a different shaft are set to be charged with illegal mining, trespassing, as well as the contravention of the Immigration Act.
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