Toekies residents close illegal mine holes
The residents of Toekomsrus closed holes made by zama zamas claiming 'taking back our community'.
A large number of Toekomsrus residents took to the streets on National Women’s Day not only to march peacefully but to close the holes through which illegal miners access the tunnels.
Also read: The fight against illegal mining gets momentum
This community-led operation which started early on Tuesday morning, August 9 was organised by Enrique Bhana, Women Against Women and Child Abuse (WAWA) centre manager.
The purpose of the operation was to get rid of zama zamas in the area and leave them no space to operate. This has been a problem in our community for a long time and it’s only now that it gets the spotlight.
“They have been terrorising our community and it’s high time we put an end to their illegal activities, which are also destroying our environment,” said Bhana.
Speaking to the Herald, local resident Mary Afrika said they wanted to do away with illegal mining in their community.
Also read: Police deploy spesialised units in West Rand to flush out illegal miners
“We decided to joined this operation and sacrifice our Women’s Day celebrations because we are so fed up with these people.
We’ve seen them raping women in our neighbouring communities and they are also stealing from us. We are victims in our own spaces and that needs to stop,” said Afrika who added that when they heard about the operation, she and other women in the area were more than happy to give up their Women’s Day celebrations.
Locals said they often hears gunshots during the night in the spot frequented by illegal miners, and suspect that they were either robbing the community or fighting among themselves.
Also read: Bekkersdal joins protests against zama zamas
