Mchunu vows police won't back down from crackdown on illegal mining

STILFONTEIN - An operation to shut down an illegal mining operation at the Buffelsfontein mine in Stilfontein was set to continue on Saturday morning.

This follows a visit by Police Minister Senzo Mchunu to the area on Friday.

ALSO READ: 

 - Mchunu dismisses calls for illegal Stilfontein miners to resurface and not be arrested

- Calls mount for de-escalation of tensions between law enforcement & illegal miners in Stilfontein

Mchunu was joined by a government delegation in a meeting with community leaders and a local mining forum in an attempt to bring hundreds of illegal miners stuck underground back to the surface. 

A decomposed body was recovered earlier this week. 

So far, Operation Vala Umgodi has seen the arrests of more than 1,000 illegal miners, and the recovery of uncut diamonds, more than five million rand in in cash and unlicensed weapons. 

Sanco (SA National Civic Organisation) regional secretary Lucky Ndlovu, who represented the community in Friday's roundtable discussion, says government needs to prioritise saving lives over the recovery of illicit goods. 

"We are still saying we want those who have committed crimes to pay for their crime but not with death."

Despite claims of heavy-handedness by law enforcement, Mchunu says authorities won't back down until the matter is resolved. 

While it's unclear at this point how long it will take for the remaining zama zamas to resurface, Mchunu says boots will be on the ground for at least a few more months in what some have criticised as a costly exercise.