Among coal they find gold
Coal is not the only commodity that sells at the illegal mine in oSizweni, a small economy that has sustained some residents for many years.
Last week the Newcastle Advertiser published the story of two grandmothers who work at an illegal coal mine to provide for their families.
However, coal is not the only commodity that sells at the illegal mine in oSizweni, a small economy that has sustained some residents for many years.
At some point in the past, the eroded excavations at the mine were level with the earth on which homes and a school nearby still stand.
Now, in places, the holes are almost twenty metres deep. Tunnels run underground and grandmothers come to pick the surface for valuable coal.
With shovels and pickaxes, bucket after bucket is filled with black gold. The holes become deeper and wider. The search never ends.
Sitting in the shade of a tree on the outskirts of the side of the mine, Frank Mkhwanaza observes his products with a keen eye.
Mr Mkhwanaza who is 67 years old, makes bricks from the soil the miners have dug up over the years. He mixes the different types of soil together before baking the bricks in an oven he fashioned by hand. The fires underneath the ovens are often kept alive with coal from the mine.
The bricks take up to two and half months to bake, whereafter he sells them for R4.50 each. He has been making a living like this since 1982, after he was retrenched.
“This is my only income and I work here alone,” he said, pointing to a small area close to the tree. “I was working in the storeroom of a big company here in Newcastle before I was retrenched. Still today, I don’t know why. I think the reason was political.”
He told the Newcastle Advertiser he had seen many people coming and going over the years, telling their stories. Today, approximately 20 people make bricks at the mine, their ovens dotting the landscape.
The mine poses a serious danger to a nearby school, Mzamo High School. According to some residents, the tunnels run directly underneath the school. During break times, pupils play close to the edges of the excavations.
The mine has been classified as illegal, as no mining permit was obtained and the land was not approved for mining operations.
Questions sent to the Portfolio Committee on Mineral Resources regarding the future of the mine have not yet yielded any response.
“This practice is a serious problem in oSizweni, considering that these illegal miners are digging beneath one of the community schools and in so doing they put the safety of pupils and staff members at risk,” said committee chairperson, Sahlulele Luzipo, after a meeting with stakeholders on October 17.
