Pretoria - Cabinet on Thursday expressed regret at the loss of lives of illegal miners at the derelict Langlaagte mine, in Johannesburg.
“Cabinet regrets the tragic loss of lives of those illegal miners who died in the derelict Langlaagte mine. These fatalities highlight the dangers of illicit mining as these unlawful activities put the lives of the community at risk,” said Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Jeff Radebe.
This, as it was reported on Wednesday that the bodies of the last two miners that were trapped underground were retrieved.
Minister Radebe said the Department of Mineral Resources is working with law enforcement agencies to ensure that perpetrators are brought to book and in particular the main ringleaders who continue to trade in illegal minerals.
“Cabinet calls on all stakeholders to work together to eradicate illegal mining in the country. The department is working together with mining companies and has closed more than 200 disused mining operations related to illegal mining,” said the Minister.
Crime Statistics
Meanwhile, Cabinet has welcomed the release the 2015/16 crime statistics by the South Africa Police Service (SAPS) that reflect an overall trend that crime in the country has decreased.
“While the progress made by SAPS in bringing down the levels of certain types of crimes is applauded, there remains concern over the increase of violent crime, especially murder,” said the Minister.
Released earlier this month, the official statistics showed that the murder rate increased by 4.9%.
In the 2015/16 financial year, the number of murder cases stood at 18 673, while the figure was 17 805 in 2014/15.
Minister Radebe called on South Africans to do their bit to fight crime.
“Fighting crime is everyone’s responsibility. We all need to work with the SAPS to realise our common objective of safer communities, safer cities and a safer country. This will increase collaboration between the different law-enforcement arms to reduce crime levels.” – SAnews.gov.za
