In a court application seeking a final order for government assistance to help miners trapped underground in Stilfontein, North West, a lawyer representing the Society for the Protection of Our Constitution argued that tactics like withholding food to force the miners out amounted to brutality.
Yasmin Omar, the lawyer, told the Gauteng High Court that the government must adhere to the Bill of Rights in its treatment of the miners. She made her case as the court considered urgent intervention to assist the miners still believed to be trapped.
Judge Brenda Neukircher reserved judgment after hearing the arguments. On Saturday, the court had issued an interim order requiring the mineshaft to be unblocked, allowing any trapped miners to exit. The court directed that the shaft should not be locked by any party, whether governmental or private.
This week, the government and police returned to court, requesting the dismissal of the application. Advocate Bongi Lukhele, representing the Minister of Mineral Resources, insisted that the miners were not truly trapped. He argued they could exit through an alternative shaft, which had been opened for their use, though he claimed they were reluctant to surface due to fear of arrest by the police.
Lukhele emphasized that the miners were engaging in illegal activities by being in the mine and that the police had the authority to enforce the law. He urged the court not to support what he termed their lawlessness.
Judge Neukircher acknowledged the significance of the case and committed to delivering a ruling by Monday. Lukhele also noted that the miners could exit through the Magaret mine shaft, which was designated as an emergency exit.
Buffelsfontein Gold Mines has also involved its rescue services, conducting a risk assessment to ensure the safe exit of the miners. The mine is reported to be about 2 kilometers deep, making entry potentially hazardous.
Lukhele further stated that miners who had already surfaced had not reported any mistreatment by the police or any imminent danger, but reiterated that they were in the mine illegally and should not have been there in the first place.
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