The matter is postponed to Tuesday for the respondents, the ministers of co-operative governance & traditional affais, police, health and mineral resources & energy to make their representations.
While the SA Police Service (SAPS) welcomes the court order, this does not prevent SAPS from performing its constitutional mandate, spokesperson Brig Athlenda Mathe said.
She said SAPS static deployment operations continue at all abandoned and disused mining shafts in the Stilfontein area where police appeal to all illegal miners to resurface.
“All those who resurface will continue to be assessed by emergency medical personnel on site, as has been the case. Those that are in good health will be processed and detained. Those that require further medical care will be taken to hospital under police guard,” Mathe said.
On Saturday morning, one South African citizen was arrested at a house in Kanana that was used as a smelter. “He was found to be in possession of gold-bearing material. Equipment used in illegal mining operations was also seized in this intelligence-driven operation,” she said.
By 4pm on Saturday afternoon, another three illegal miners managed to resurface, Mathe confirmed.
Meanwhile, North West MEC for community safety and transport management Wessels Morweng convened a meeting with stakeholders who are part of the rescue team established by police minister Senzo Mchunu.
After visiting the scene on Friday, Mchunu appointed Morweng to chair the rescue team to develop a comprehensive rescue plan to assist in bringing the illegal miners to the surface. This included a request to mine owners and rescue specialists to conduct the assessment that will inform the operational plan to rescue those stuck underground.
Morweng leads a rescue team made up of SAPS officers, the district and local mayors, community leaders, mine owners, mine rescue technical team and government departments,
“We all agree that we want to rescue those people and we need the community to come on board for us to succeed in this operation,” the MEC said in the meeting.
The mine owners indicated a need to clear the site before any resources could be deployed, which will happen once community members have vacated the area.
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