South Africa’s government says it is not willing to help around 4,000 illegal miners, who are believed to be inside an abandoned mine situated in the North West province.
Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told a media briefing on Wednesday that the government would not be sending help to the illegal miners known locally as “zama zamas” because they are involved in a criminal act.
“We are not sending help to criminals. We are going to smoke them out.
They will come out. Criminals are not to be helped; criminals are to be prosecuted. We didn’t send them there,” Ntshavheni said.
