Cape Town – The court case regarding the standoff involving illegal miners at the Stilfontein mine in North West has been postponed to Thursday to allow the court to review the South African Police Service’s (SAPS) response documents.
SAPS clarified that the miners are not trapped but are refusing to surface to avoid arrest, citing concerns about explosives that could endanger law enforcement.
Over 500 illegal miners have exited via an alternative shaft, while authorities continue their retrieval operation with mine experts on-site.
Meanwhile, according to The Citizen, Yasmin Omar, the miners’ lawyer, accused the police of delaying the case and compared the situation to the Marikana massacre, warning of potential loss of life.
“We are sitting with a situation that is even worse than Marikana. It is no good for us to be commemorating Marikana at a certain point every year when we are allowing for a situation where a significant number of lives are going to be lost while we are watching.
“We are watching a mass killing of people on TV. It is unacceptable, especially in a democracy like ours,” the report quoted Omar as saying.
The High Court in Pretoria on Saturday ordered an end to the police blockade of a former gold mine. Police and ambulances have been at the site, in Stilfontein, about 140 kilometres (90 miles) southwest of Johannesburg, for several days, AFP reported.
“The mine shaft in Stilfontein… shall be unblocked and may not be blocked by any person or institution whether government or private.
“Any miners trapped in the mine shaft shall be permitted to exit; no non-emergency personnel may enter the mine shaft,” the judge said.
Last week, a local claimed to have been told there were around 4,000 miners underground.
Follow African Insider on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
Picture: X/@RSA_CJS
For more African news, visit Africaninsider.com
Compiled by Betha Madhomu
