Illegal mining fears rise

FAMILY members of a murdered illegal miner ambushed in the escalating zama zama turf war have been moved to a place of safety.

This is amid fears of revenge attacks between rival mining groups in the community of the N12 informal settlement in Cloverdene, Benoni, in Ekurhuleni.

At least four women were killed execution-style in a shack by two unknown gunmen just after 8pm last Thursday. Another woman with a bullet lodged in her head is fighting for her life in hospital. The victims are all from Lesotho.

The family members were attacked two days before they were due to bury a relative, an illegal miner believed to have been one of the executed seven zama zamas found dumped in a field two weeks ago.

The women’s murders brought to 11 the number of known deaths since the discovery of the decomposing bodies near a mine dump in Benoni last week. A family member, who did not want to be identified, confirmed that the women were related to the illegal miner whose funeral was held on Saturday amid fears of another attack.

“I went to the area after the shooting and I was shocked by what had happened. The whole family is shocked. We are all asking ourselves questions,” the man said. He would not give further comment.

A neighbour said of the the women who died, one was the murdered man’s sister, another his sister-inlaw, and two were his aunts. The woman hospitalised is another sister-in-law.

A family member who lost his wife during the attack would not comment yesterday.

Ekurhuleni mayor Mzwandile Masina said the family members were moved to a municipal property on Saturday, where they would stay while the situation was being assessed.

He visited the family on Saturday and described the attack as “vicious, barbaric and senseless”.

“What makes this situation worse is that the family were still trying to deal with the loss of a family member…

“There is a lot of tension there, and while we understand people may be scared, the only way we can bring lasting peace into the area will be through arrests of the perpetrators,” Masina said.

He said the city had provided the family with a safe house and food, and had undertaken to assist with the burials. The family members were also taken for counselling. Masina said he would discuss the matter with Police Minister Fikile Mbalula.

Provincial police spokesperson Colonel Lungelo Dlamini said no arrests had been made. The provincial task team was hunting for the killers, he said.