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Zama zamas are illegal artisanal miners in South Africa who occupy closed or operational mines to mine for minerals such as gold, iron ore, coal, and manganese. The term zama zama loosely translates to "take a chance" in isiZulu and they use rudimentary tools and explosives for mining.
South African authorities began a siege of the mine in August 2024, cutting off food, water and medicine supplies, in an attempt to force illegal miners to come to the surface and be arrested. [1] The blocking of key shaft exits trapped miners underground, with reports suggesting that many were unable to resurface, fearing arrest or retribution ...
Galamsey in Ghana. Galamsey refers to illegal small-scale gold mining in Ghana. [1] The term is derived from the English phrase "gather them and sell". [2] Historically, galamsey referred to traditional small-scale mining practices in Ghana, where local communities would gather and search for gold in rivers and streams.
A former police officer with 12 years' experience in cases of "illegal mining" said he feared that hundreds more bodies of "illegals" could still be underground in mines in the city of Welkom, according to a report in the leading Afrikaans daily, Beeld. He estimated that about 3,000 illegal miners work underground in the mines in Welkom alone. [3]
Illegal mining can be a subsistence activity, as is the case with artisanal mining, or it can belong to large-scale organized crime, [2] spearheaded by illegal mining syndicates. [ 3 ] [ 4 ] On an international level, approximately 80 percent of small-scale mining operations can be categorized as illegal. [ 5 ]
Illegal gold miners, commonly referred to as "zama zamas", operate in abandoned mine shafts and use the empty gas cylinders, known as "phendukas", to process the stolen ore. The cylinders, often stolen, are first drained of gas, then cut open so that ore can be placed in them along with a steel ball which crushes the ore as the cylinder is rotated.
An Indigenous group in Brazil said Wednesday its members detained 12 people for allegedly mining illegally in the Amazon and handed them over to police. The non-profit Urihi Associação Yanomami ...
In an effort to halt the epidemic, the authorities are clamping down on illegal mining and carrying out a clean-up of the area. [6] The number of cases has fallen since April when illegal mining in the area was halted, and some of the residents were evacuated. [7] Education on health and the dangers of lead mining is also being given to local ...