South African soldiers dismantle illegal mining activities near Johannesburg

South African soldiers deployed to high-crime areas have dismantled illegal gold mining operations in a community near Johannesburg this week, forcing some illegal miners to flee and abandon their equipment, according to authorities.

Police and the army recovered various tools used by illegal miners, including generators and drill machines — equipment documented by an Associated Press photographer on Thursday.

Makeshift trenches with food supplies and utensils belonging to the miners were also dismantled, with clothing items left behind after the miners fled a site in Randfontein, about 40 kilometres to the west of Johannesburg.

The operations were part of a rare move by the government to deploy soldiers in some of the country’s most crime-ridden areas, including in the Western Cape province that includes the city of Cape Town, and the economic hub province of Gauteng.

With dozens of abandoned mine shafts lining the outskirts of Johannesburg, illegal mining is rife in the area as heavily armed crime syndicates and informal miners known as “zama zamas” enter the shafts in search of leftover deposits of gold or other precious minerals.

It is illegal to mine without a government licence, and in some places, the conditions are dangerous.

Other provinces with abandoned shafts, like the North West and Mpumalanga, have also experienced high levels of illegal mining, sometimes with tragic consequences.

Authorities say there are an estimated 30,000 illegal miners in South Africa, operating in some of its 6,000 abandoned mine shafts.

The government has noted an increase in illegal mining, which it estimates is worth more than $4 billion a year just in gold lost to criminal syndicates.

The trade is believed to be predominantly controlled by migrants from neighboring Lesotho, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique, stoking anger among South African communities against both the criminal bosses and foreigners living in the local community.

Responding to questions from lawmakers on Thursday, President Cyril Ramaphosa said the deployment of the troops would take place alongside other measures, such as strengthening anti-gang units and illegal mining task teams.

“The police will also be working with the National Prosecuting Authority on multi-disciplinary task teams to target the leadership, finances, firearms and logistics of these criminal networks,” Ramaphosa said.