{"id":32216,"date":"2023-08-05T12:50:57","date_gmt":"2023-08-05T12:50:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas"},"modified":"2023-08-05T13:11:33","modified_gmt":"2023-08-05T13:11:33","slug":"the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas","title":{"rendered":"The risky work of zama-zamas"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Lesotho. <\/strong><\/span>TWO illegal Basotho mine workers, better known as zama-zamas, have been trapped underground in a disused old mine in South Africa\u2019s Free State Province for the past four weeks.<\/p>\n

Harmony Gold Mine was closed for commercial operations some years back. But the zama-zamas still dig for the precious metal, often putting their lives at risk due to lack of safety measures or equipment.<\/p>\n

Initially, at least 31 of these illegal mineworkers were trapped in the mine. Only one person was rescued alive two weeks ago. Two other bodies were also picked up from the mine.<\/p>\n

Rescuers and relatives of those that remain underground are now fearing for the worst. \u201cOf the three, two were found dead while one was still alive. He was in a critical condition,\u201d Molefi Ramaema, a gravely worried zama-zama from Berea told thepost.<\/p>\n

Ramaema who has been a zama-zama for more than five years describes being an illegal gold digger as \u201cexcruciating\u201d and \u201crisky\u201d. The father of two said tough economic conditions and worsening poverty in Lesotho are forcing many to work in such dangerous environments where their lives are constantly under threat.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are very poor in Lesotho,\u201d Ramaema says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biting poverty forces us to leave our homes,\u201d he says, describing how they retrieved the three zama-zamas.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was risky because we were working at night,\u201d he says, adding that they were afraid of being arrested by the police.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were also afraid that the owners might bounce back,\u201d he says, claiming they stumbled upon some dead bodies during the process. Ramaema says they need more time to search for other missing bodies underground.<\/p>\n

He says Zama-zamas can retrieve the bodies without help from the mine or the South African government if they are allowed to work during the day \u201cIt can take us just a few days to retrieve the bodies,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

South African authorities have however ruled out using the zama-zamas for the operation. Ramaema says they could take at least seven days to retrieve all the men using their tools if they could be given a chance.<\/p>\n

Their trusted tool is a long hard rope that they use to go down the shaft. To do their work, the zama-zamas have to be many so that some remain at the surface of the mine to support those going down with the rope, Ramaema says.<\/p>\n

Those on the surface of the mine also act as lookouts for any police presence. \u201cOnce underground, we can work day and night because there would be no one to disturb us.<\/p>\n

We just need tools like a hammer, shovel, basins, chisels, torches for light and food,\u201d he says. He says teams that go underground for mining usually include ex-miners who use their experience to warn of possible dangers in the mine.<\/p>\n

He says the exercise is not only strenuous but is extremely risky at the same time. Some of the zama-zamas, he says, have seen a massive change in fortunes after striking it rich in the mines.<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir lives have changed for the better,\u201d said Ramaema, who is taking a break home before returning when the dust settles.<\/p>\n

While underground, Ramaema says they also order food from those still outside. The food is quite pricey, he says. He says the zama-zamas also work with mine guards who tip them off about impending police operations.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf police are patrolling the area, we will be informed by those at the top,\u201d Ramaema says.<\/p>\n

Ramaema says on the fateful day, some of the zama-zamas saw the owners of the mine driving towards the mine. He alleges that they then threw something \u201ctoxic\u201d to suffocate them.<\/p>\n

The mine owners then drove away, he says. \u201cIt is not true that one of the miners lit a cigarette and caused a fire underground,\u201d he says. He says there is a video to support the claim of the attack.<\/p>\n

He says soon after the attack, they saw smoke billowing out of the shaft adding this was a deliberate attack against the illegal miners. He says the zama-zamas had been working in the mine for years without any or many incidents. Ramaema appealed to the government of Lesotho to use its influence to retrieve the dead bodies in the mine.<\/p>\n

According to the European Union\u2019s Enact programme, a partnership between the Institute for Security Studies and Interpol, in collaboration with the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime, an estimated 10 percent of the illegal gold produced by the zama-zamas is destined for foreign markets.<\/p>\n

In June 2021, more than 20 bodies of Basotho men were found at a disused gold mine in Klerksdorp, South Africa. Ramaema says famo gangsters control the disused mines, especially around the Vaal Reefs.<\/p>\n

He says the famo gangsters usually fight over access to the shafts. \u201cIf you are not a member of that group you are banned from working in those mines,\u201d Ramaema says. Ramaema says some of the zama-zamas work in fully operational mines and pay bribes to security guards to be allowed to go underground.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese types of zama-zamas can take close to six months underground digging for gold and delegating some people to sell it to the black market on their behalf,\u201d Ramaema says.<\/p>\n

He says some of the famo gangsters \u201cliterally own the mines\u201d and control who has access to the mines. The gold mining activities have triggered a national outcry in South Africa with the government blaming illegal foreigners for the crisis.<\/p>\n

Critics however say the illegal miners are right at the bottom of the ladder with corrupt, well connected South African businessmen and politicians buying the gold for sale outside the country.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Lesotho<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Lesotho. TWO illegal Basotho mine workers, better known as zama-zamas, have been trapped underground in a disused old mine in South Africa\u2019s Free State Province for the past four weeks. Harmony Gold Mine was closed for commercial operations some years back. But the zama-zamas still dig for the precious metal, often putting their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":32215,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3,7],"tags":[233,246,245],"class_list":["post-32216","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","category-head-lines","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-lesotho","tag-lesotho"],"yoast_head":"\nThe risky work of zama-zamas - Lesotho<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"TWO illegal Basotho mine workers, better known as zama-zamas, have been trapped underground in a disused old mine in Sou ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The risky work of zama-zamas\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"TWO illegal Basotho mine workers, better known as zama-zamas, have been trapped underground in a disused old mine in Sou ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Lesotho\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-08-05T12:50:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-08-05T13:11:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/sites\/62\/2023\/08\/sm_1691228220.077172.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"The risky work of zama-zamas\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-08-05T12:50:57+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-05T13:11:33+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas\"},\"wordCount\":954,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/sites\/62\/2023\/08\/sm_1691228220.077172.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Lesotho\",\"Lesotho\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"community\",\"head lines\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/the-risky-work-of-zama-zamas\",\"name\":\"The risky work of zama-zamas - 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