Call to prosecute mining houses over abandoned shafts

JOHANNESBURG - Illegal mining is entrenched in South Africa. 

Mining analyst David van Wyk says companies should also be prosecuted for leaving their mines abandoned.

This as the country is experiencing increased violence related to illegal mining.

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"Well I think that the problem is multi-layered. The problem has to do with the migrant labour system that took labour from southern Mozambique, Lesotho, the Eastern Cape and so on," Van Wyk said.

"As a consequence Lesotho never got to develop because its human resources were all sitting in South Africa digging gold.

"Mozambique was undermined because it could not really develop and those people were all sitting in the mines in South Africa," he said.

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"If we want to stop people from coming across to South Africa as they've done for 130 years, we need to ensure those areas where they come from also get developed.

"We also need to look at the criminality of corporations that abandoned mines.

"We have 6,000 abandoned mines. We need to prosecute companies and company directors that are involved in abandoning mines."