AN ETHNOGRAPHY OF INFORMAL ARTISANAL GOLD …...Security at the Margins: 2 AN ETHNOGRAPHY OF...

SecurityattheMargins:www.theseamproject.org 1

ANETHNOGRAPHYOFINFORMALARTISANALGOLDMININGINJOHANNESBURG

31March2017

Executivesummary

Informalartisanalgoldmining(ASM) in Johannesburgoccursat theedgeofthe city; in material, physical and legal ways; rooted in the city’s history and aproductofitscontemporarysocio-economiccomplexities.Thisreportprovidesanin-depthdiscussionofASMinJohannesburg.Basedonpreviousresearchconductedin2013bytheACMS, threemonthsofethnographic research in2016,anddozensofinterviewswithminers, their families,mining communities and others involved inthissectorofwork;themainfindingsofthereportarethreefold:firstthatASMisanimportant –buthigh-risk – livelihood strategyof theurbanpoor, especially cross-border migrants, and is wrought with legal and social restrictions that furthercompoundthedangersthatminersfaceintheirwork.Second,therearesignificanthealth,safetyandwellbeing-relatedoutcomesandconditionsassociatedwithASMthatarepoorlyunderstood.Inparticular,theriseofinformalsettlementsinminingcommunities, the lack of adequate protection to workers in the sector, thecriminalisationofASM,and thedisregardofenvironmental rehabilitationofminescolludetocreateariskyanddangerousenvironmentforthoselivingandworkinginandaroundthesector.Third,ASMisrootedinlong-heldbeliefsandritualsthatbringintoquestiontheownershipofnaturalresources,thestructureofworkteamsandtheorganisationoflabour.ThisanthropologicalaspectofASMispoorlyunderstoodinbothpopularandacademicdiscourse.

This report is compiled by Zaheera Jinnah and Kenneth Tafira. Additional

writingundertakenbySamSpiegelandJanetMunakamweandresearchbythefirsttwoauthors,EthelMusonza,andCraigNyoni.


ANETHNOGRAPHYOFINFORMALARTISANALGOLDMININGINJOHANNESBURG

1.Introduction

Artisanal small-scale mining (ASM) refers to the work of individuals and

groupswhomineformineralsusingbasicequipment,organisedinsmallgroups(ILO

2005). Informal ASM includes the absence of any permit to undertake mining,

minimaluseofsafetyequipment,andthesellingofmineralsinformally.Thereisno

firmdatathatallowsustoquantifytheextentofASM(especiallyinSouthAfrica),or

to determine the profile of miners. Anecdotal data suggests that internal and

internationalmigrantsmaybeinvolvedinASMinSA,thatitconstitutesanimportant

livelihoodactivityfortheurbanpoor,andthatthereareseriouslegal,safety,health

risksassociatedwithit(JinnahandMunakamwe,forthcoming).

Thisreportpresentsthefindingsofacollaborativepilotstudybetweenthe

ACMS and University of Edinburgh on informal artisanal mining in Johannesburg

undertaken in 2016. Animated by the historical and local contexts of urban

livelihoods,wellbeingandmobility,thestudyaimedtoexplorethelivedexperiences

of informal miners in Johannesburg and place their narratives within broader

political, social, economicandhistorical contexts,which shape theemergenceand

persistence of this form of livelihoods. In particular, the study investigates the

followingquestions:

− What is the relationship between informal artisanal goldmining

andhealthandwellbeingatanindividualandcommunitylevel?

− Whataretheworkstructureandlabourconditions(typesoftasks,

hoursofwork,wages,risks)ofminersinthestudy?

− What are the risks and responses associatedwith engaging in a

livelihood activity that is both physically dangerous and legally

criminalised?


− Whatistherelationshipbetweenmigrationandinformalartisanal

mining?

This report is structured into four sections. After this introduction, we

presenttheconceptualandtheoreticalframeworkforthestudy.Thisisfollowedby

adiscussionofourmethods,andtheresearchsites.Finally,sectionfourconsistsof

themain findings of informalmining, organised around four key themes, namely:

work structure; social realities; health; andmythology and beliefs onmining.We

begin,however,withsomebriefcontextofgoldmininginSouthAfricaandASMin

general.

Goldmining

Gold deposits in Johannesburg form part of the Witwatersrand Basin, a

geological basin stretching around 400 km from the Free State Province in the

central interior of the country, to Gauteng and the NorthWest in the north, and

reaching4000mindepth,makingSouthAfricangoldminessomeofthelongestand

deepest in theworld (CoM2002). This area has been heavilymined over the last

century,butgoldreservesremainonthereefinsignificantdepositsinbothworking

andclosedmines,someofwhichhavebeenabandonedorareownerlessaftergold

miningcompaniesclosedoperations.

Over the last decade, there has been a lowering of the international gold

price and global demand, coupled with rising national labour costs, making gold

mininglessprofitableinthecountry.In1987,therewere65activegoldminesinthe

company;thisdroppedto15in2015(Geocouncil2016).Theissueofabandonedand

ownerlessminesisasensitiveone,wheretechnically,governmentisresponsiblefor

securing and rehabilitating these mines, but has lacked the capacity to do so. It

currently has contracted the council for geoscience and Mintek to compile a

database of these mines before any further action can be taken. In practice,

therefore, abandoned and ownerless mines remain just that: accessible to the

public,and thusa risk to thehealthandsafetyof communitieswho livealongside


andon themines.There isnoclearauthority taskedwith securing themines,and

littleresourcestoeffectivelyenforcethenecessaryregulationsonrehabilitationand

safety.

Artisanalmining

Artisanal mining is an important source of livelihoods for the poor. It is

estimated that globally, around 13 million people work directly in the artisanal

miningsector,withafurther80millionwhorelyonitforincomesupport(ILO2015).

ThemajorityofartisanalminingoccursintheglobalSouth,wheretheavailabilityof

mineral resources, coupledwithhighunemploymentandpoverty, pushmany into

this source of livelihood. Artisanal mining is associated with several challenges,

includingdeathanddisabilityforminerswhoworkunderpoorandriskyconditions,

withpoorhealthoutcomes,asa resultof limitedprotectionandawareness,a low

levelofregulationandlabourprotection,andenvironmentaldegradation.

In South Africa, industrial gold mining has been a significant source of

employment and livelihood to thousands of regional households. Throughout the

twentiethcentury,atleast40percentofworkersemployedonSouthAfricanmines

originated from outside the country (Wetzel & Tlabela 2006). Due to significant

transformation of the sector since the 1980s, and the introduction of theMining

Charter in 2004, in 2012, that figure has dropped to around 20% (TEBA 2012;

Budlender2013).Todayminingcontinuestobeasourceofemployment,wheregold

mining accounts for 124 000 direct jobs (QES 2014), with a further 800 000

estimatedindirectly(ChamberofMines2013),contributingtoaroundsevenpercent

ofthecountry’sGrossDomesticProduct(GDP)(StatsSA2015).

Although these statistics are significant, there is a deeper narrative at play

here.Aparallel, andat times intersectingeconomyof informalmininghasexisted

for decades across the world, (see for instance Summer’s 1966 document on

informalartisanalmininginZimbabwe).Yet,littleattentioninSouthAfricahasbeen

paidtothehistoricalandglobalconnectionsofinformalartisanalmining.Moreover,

little attempt has beenmade to situate it within its contemporary economic and


politicalcontexts.Instead,theoverarchingdiscourseonartisanalmininghasbeento

criminalise it,with littleunderstandingof themultifaceteddynamicsof thesector,

its role as a source of livelihoods, and its relation to social exclusion and labour

marketchoice.

2.Conceptualframeworkandliteraturereview

There is no globally accepted definition of ASM. Definitions, and therefore

regulations,differatthenationallevel.Wedepartfromthisdefinition(MMSD2002

315):

Artisanal and small-scale mining refers to mining by individuals,

groups, families or cooperatives with minimal or no mechanization [sic],

oftenintheinformal(illegal)sectorofthemarket.

Severaldefinitionsofartisanalmininghighlight the followingcharacteristics

ofworkandworkersinthissector(MMSD2002:315),whereit:

• istheminingofmarginalorsmallreservesofminerals;

• isundertakenwithrudimentarytools;

• operatesinthegreyeconomy;

• islabourintensive;

• involves miners have poor access to markets and support

services;and

• involvesminimaloradversehealthandsafetyconditions.

For this study, we theoretically position artisanal mining within two

frameworks,namelyinformaleconomy,andsocialexclusion.Chen’sdefinitionofthe


informal economy resonates stronglywith the formof artisanalminingwe found.

Sheidentifiesinformality(2002:4)as:

All forms of ‘informal employment’—that is, employment without

labour or social protection—both inside and outside informal enterprises,

including both self-employment in unregistered enterprises and waged

employmentinunprotectedjobs.

Thus, informalartisanalmining involvesall activities related toprospecting,

miningandsaleofminerals,occurringinabandonedorclosedmines,intheabsence

of licensestoprospectormineforminerals;whichoccuroutsideofregisteredand

formalprocessesofregulation;andisundertakenbypeoplewhoworkwithlimited

access or a lack of access to safety mechanisms, as well as to labour and social

protection.

We expand this definition by turning to social exclusion theory, which is

defined as ‘a process and a state that prevents individuals or groups from full

participation insocial,economicandpolitical lifeand fromassertingtheir rights; it

derives from exclusionary relationships’ (Beall and Piron, 2005: 8). This approach

helpstocontextualiseartisanalminingasalivelihoodstrategyasaresponsetolegal

andsocialmarginalisationofmigrants inpost-apartheidSouthAfrica (Jinnah2016;

Landau2016).

Wedistinguishartisanal (informal)miningfromillegalminingbasedonfour

factors,againdrawingonChen(2002).First,wenotethedistinctionbetweenillegal

goodsandservices,andillegalsystemsandprocesses.Inthiscase,artisanalmining

consistsofproducinggoodsthatarelegal,buttheproductionofwhichisundertaken

outsideof legalframeworks.Second, it isnotpossibletodeterminewhetherthose

engaging in this activity are doing so with the intention of avoiding the costs

associatedwith legality. In otherwords,we do not have evidence to suggest that

informalminersareoperatingoutsideof regulation,with the intentionofavoiding

taxesorotherstatutoryobligations.Infact,ourdatasuggeststheopposite,namely

thatmany informalminers aremore than eager to acquire registration and have


their activities recognisedaswork, andare ready topay taxes. Inmany instances,

remaininginformalandtheprecaritythataccompaniesit–includingphysicalinjury

anddeath,arrest,thepaymentofbribestopoliceandpoorworkingconditionswith

noaccesstosocialsecurity– ismorecostlytotheworkerthanaretheobligations

associatedwithbeingregistered.Third,the‘illegality’ofinformalminingstemsfrom

a lack of effective regulatory provisions for small-scale mining, rather than overt

criminal intent on the part of those engaged in it; we argue that the process of

obtaining legal permits to mine as a small scale artisanal miner is overly

bureaucratic, expensive and administratively inaccessible (see LRC 2015). Finally,

globalevidencesuggeststhatthetypeofactivitiesundertakenbyrespondentsasa

livelihood is more likely to be classified as informal or artisanal mining than it is

illegalmining.

Thus,weobservetheeconomicandsocialcontextofSouthAfrica:acountry

witha25percentofficialunemploymentrate,athreepercenturbanisationrateand

a city, Johannesburg, which has a sizeable migrant population, consisting of 30

percent internal migrants and seven percent cross-border migrants. Within this

economic landscape,weregard informalminingasacritical, legitimate,butpoorly

protected and highly stigmatised strategy for themarginalised and urban poor to

survive.

Literatureoverview(sectionwrittenbySamSpiegel)

Context-approachingmining,healthandmigrantpopulationsinurbanareas

Recentglobalhealthliteraturehasstressedaneedfornewevidence-based

approachesforaddressingthewell-beingchallengesfacingmigrantpopulations

involvedintheextractivesector.CarneyandGushulak(2016)discusstheneedto

paycloserattentiontotheneglectedrightsofmigrantandmobilepopulationsin

remotelocations,makingacaseforbroadeninghealthagendasinrelationto

patternsofmobilityandchangingsocialdynamicsinmineraleconomies.Smithetal.


(2016)arguethatglobally,healthliteratureregardingartisanalandsmall-scale

mining(ASM)–asectorprovidinglivelihoodstomorethan100millionpeople,often

involvingrudimentarymethodsofmineralextractionandhighlevelsofpoverty–has

tendedtofocusontoxicexposureissues,whileoverlookingaspectrumofother

pressinghealthissues.Theycallforwideninghealthagendas,urgingfor“more

holistic”andregionalapproachesthatengagearangeoftoolsforunderstanding

risksandconcernsinASMcommunities.Compellingcallsforwideningextractive

sectorhealthagendasarealsoexemplifiedinarecentreviewarticleinGlobalPublic

Health,whereMactaggertetal.(2016)discusshealthinrelationtovariable

employmentconditionsinruralminingeconomies,alongwiththesocio-political

factorsthatshapelivelihoods.However,aswiththisreview,andindeedmuchofthe

literaturecallingfornewhealthpromotionagendasintheminingsector,thefocus

hasbeenonhealthinrural,remotelocations,noturbancontextsofmining.Aswe

discuss,addressinghealthinequitiesinurbanASMcontextsinJohannesburg

requiresnotonlyrecognisingthatminingactivitiesinurban/peri-urbansettingscan

havearangeofhealthimplications,butalso,fundamentally,thatsocial

determinantsofhealthcanbeshapedinimportantwaysbythe(non-)provisionof

urbanpublicservicesanddynamicurbanpoliticalprocesses.

Literatureoverview(sectionwrittenbySamSpiegel)

Ourapproachbuildsonaburgeoningbodyofliteratureaddressingtherisks

oftop-downandnon-participativemodesofregulationandhealthpromotionin

countrieswhereASMisasignificanteconomicsector.AcrossAfrica,recentliterature

onASMhasexaminedthenegativeimpactsofaggressivepolicingandheavy-handed

governanceapproachestoeradicatewhatisperceivedbyauthoritiesas“illegal”gold

mining–forexampleinZimbabwe(Spiegel,2015)andGhana(Bush,2009).Although

therehasbeenashiftgloballyinthelasttwodecadestowardsincreasedregional

policyrhetoricanddonorcountryrhetoricregardingcontext-sensitiveservice

deliveryandhealthpromotioninsmall-scalegoldminingcommunitiesinAfrica,in

somecasesrecognisingthedeeplocalsignificanceoftransitorymining(Nyameand

Grant,2014),theliteraturepointstodeeppatternsofmarginalisation,whereby


thosewhoaremostvulnerabletoseverehealthrisksfromminingareoftennot

thosewhoreceiveassistanceandsupport(Spiegel,2009;HilsonandMcQuilken,

2014).Inpart,problemsofpooraccesstohealthandsocialservices(e.g.technology

support,medicines,preventativecare,localplanninginitiatives,etc.)havepersisted,

asaresultofprotractedstrugglesovercriminalisationandlackof‘legal’status,lack

oftrustbetweengovernmentauthoritiesandminingcommunities,andapoor

understandingofthesector’slabourdynamics.InSouthAfrica,thepastfewyears

havewitnessedincreasingcriticaldebateaboutthetreatmentbyauthoritiesof

artisanalmininginthecountry–referredtoas“zama-zamamining”–assimply

illegal,andevencriminal.Newsmediahavetendedtofocusonproblemsofillegality

inthissectorratherthanontheexperiencesofmarginalisationthesector

constitutesforthoseworkingwithinit,whilegovernanceresponsetoASMhave

receivedcriticismforbeingunresponsivetolocalneeds(Nhlengetwa,K.,&

Hein,2015;Thornton,2014).

Ambivalenceinpublichealthresearchandpolicycommunitiesalsoexists

whenframingthelinkagesbetweenmigration,miningandhealth.Thereisa

longstandingbodyofscientifichealthliteratureaddressingthecorrelationsbetween

theminingsector’slabourdynamicsinSouthAfrica,andHIV-AIDSandtuberculosis

(Campbell,1997).Yet,theconceptualisationofhealth(problemsand/orbenefits)in

relationtomigrationandmobilityvaries.Whilesomehealthscientistsmaybe

temptedtoimmediatelylinkminers’migrationwithHIV-AIDSandTB,positioning

migrationinstrictlynegativetermscanitselfmaskotherrelationships;migrationand

mobilitycanhaveothersetsofhealthimplications,includingthecreationof

opportunitiesforpovertyalleviationandthecreationofremittancesthatcan

supportthehealthoffamilies.Farfrombeinganegativeinfluenceonhealth,

mobilityandmigrationfromonemininglocationtoanothercanfulfilanimportant

roleinsurvivinginaneconomythathasmadejobprospectsprofoundlydifficult.Our

approachthusaimstocontributetodebateabouthowaninterdisciplinarymixed-

methodsapproachescouldinformhealthpromotionefforts,aswellasthe


generationofmoreadaptiveapproachestoaddressthediverseconditionsand

actorswhoworkinASM,andthediverseprocessesthatshapethesocial

determinantsofhealth.Whereaspastliteraturecallsforimprovementinaddressing

thesocioeconomicconstraintsandrisksfacingthoselivingandworkinginASM

communities(Heemskerk,2005),therearenumerouscasesinthepastwhere

scientificsurveyswereusedtotryto‘capture’datainartisanalminingcommunities

(dataofahealth,environmental,socioeconomicandsociologicalnature),butwhere

criticalquestionsemergedastowhetherdatacollectionapproachesindeedserved

tobuildtrustwithminingcommunitiesandsupportmeaningfulsocialchange

(Heemskerk,2005).Thisarticleispartofalargereffortatbuildingcollaborations

thatseektocounterthestigmatisationof“illegal”goldmining,andtoinformhealth

promotionagendasthatcanbetterengagesocialorganisationalpracticeswithinthe

ASMsector,asectorthathasprovidedincometopopulationsinperi-urbansettings

inJohannesburgthathavereceivedonlyminimalscrutinytodate.Recognisingthat

artisanalandsmall-scaleminingpracticescanvaryconsiderablywitharangeof

implicationsforpovertyalleviation(Gamuetal.,2014),wepayattentiontothe

socialdynamicsandorganisationalpracticesinspecificlocalesinJohannesburg,

beforereturningtothewiderquestionofwhatanimatesandsupportseffective

publichealthresponsestothissector.

3.Methodology

This studybegan fromprevious researchon informalminingundertaken in

2012.WewerekeentorevisitanareaofJohannesburgandasiteofworkthatwe

hadpreviouslyexplored.1OurresearchisconcentratedintheWestofJohannesburg,

1Threeindependentprojectsformedthebasisofthisenquiry:from2011-2013theMiWORCprojectonlabourmigrationincludedasmallexploratorycasestudyoninformalmining,aswellasthePhDfieldworkandactivistworkofJanetMunakamwefrom2012whichisongoing.


in anarea calledRoodepoort,which is the siteof anumberof abandoned, closed

andcontinuinggoldminingoperations.

The area has a barren topography and mixed development consisting of

residentialandcommercialproperties.Housingincludesformalandinformal.Onthe

west is an informal settlement we coded ‘M’, on the east a golf course, on the

Northeast RDP houses and directly north a second informal settlement,whichwe

coded‘J’.

Figure1:MapofRoodepoort.Source:GoogleEarth™.


Figure2:MapofRoodepoortlookingNorth.Source:GoogleEarth™

Researching informalmining is sensitive for a number of reasons.We first

sought and obtained ethics clearance from the University of the Witwatersrand.

Thenweenteredtheresearchsitesandfoundmultiplesensitivities:thespacesthat

miners occupy; work in and move between are physical and imagined places of

invisibility;risk,andmarginalisation.

Although mining dumps loom large on the Johannesburg landscape, the

entrancestoinformalminingshaftsarehiddenfrompublicviewinvergesandmine

dumps, and located in informal areas that are associated with violent crime,

including rape,murder and robberies.Minerswalk along roughpathways cut into

theHighveldgrass,alongsideandacrossthemainpublicroadsthatrunWest,South

andNorthofthecity,toaccessshaftsortoconnecttothepublicminibustaxisthat

willtakethemtoandfromwork.

Miningshaftsarethemselvesassociatedwithdanger,aplaceinwhichgangs

prowl,where criminals canpounce, andwhere rockfalls anddeath are realities of

everydaylife.Moreover,giventhecriminalnatureofinformalmining,andthatmany

minersinoursamplewerenon-nationals,thoseinvolvedinthisactivityarewaryof

police,whowillharass,raid,arrestandevendetainthem.

Given this context, that is, themultiple and intersecting sensitivities that

surroundanddefinethisareaofwork,theplacesinwhichitiscarriedout,andthe

people undertake it,we adopted an ethnographic approach to our research. This

consistedofidentifyingkeyphysicalspaces,andactorsinthesector,anddeveloping

aschematicrepresentationofthevariouscomponentsofinformalmining.Thiswas

done based on existing knowledge of the sector from previous research in 2013,

severalkeyinformantinterviews,andanadvancevisittovariousminingareas.


WeidentifiedfourkeylocalitiesintheWestRandofJohannesburginwhich

informal mining was prevalent. These were all informal settlements dotted by

existing and old gold mines and mine dumps. The areas differ in size, but are

generallycharacterisedbymixedhousing;predominantlyinformalhousing,butalso

lowcostgovernmenthousingknownasRDPhouses;2andconvertedhostels,which

wereinitiallybuiltforthegoldminesintheareaintheearly20thcentury,butwhich

havesincebeenabandonedandoccupiedbytheurbanpoor.Twooftheareashave

tapwaterwithinthearea,whilsttheothertwohaveataplocatedontheperiphery

ofthearea.

Although statistical data at theWard-level is not highly credible, previous

studiesandourownfieldworkhighlightanumberof interconnectedsocio-political

issues ineacharea.Theseincludetheabsenceofbasicservices,suchaselectricity,

roads, weak delivery of water, health and safety and security, education and

recreation; this isalongsidesignificant informalnodesofgovernancecharacterised

bycorruptionbypoliceandelectedwardcouncillors,powerexercisedbyunelected

localelitessuchascommunityandbusiness leaders;highunemployment, informal

employment,andgrindingpoverty.

We identified a number of actors who are either directly or indirectly

involvedin,affectedby,orshapeinformalmining.ThisincludestheDepartmentof

MineralResources’smallscaleminingdirectorate;non-governmentalorganisations

suchasMiningAffectedCommunitiesinUnitedAction(MACUAA),ActionAidSouth

Africa, which has a programme on extractive minerals, and Partnership Africa

Canada,whichspecialisesinglobalmineralextraction.

Based on initial interviews with the actors mentioned above, as well as

observationat thesites,we identified the followingstructuresandcomponentsof

informal mining in Johannesburg: miners who go underground, surface workers,

buyers,andsponsors.Associatedactorsincludefamilywhosupportminers,whowill

2 Refers to low-cost houses built under the Reconstruction and Development Programme of 1994-6.


be responsible for rescue and recovery operations, the criminal justice and law

enforcementsystems,suchaslawyersandpolice,healthcarefacilitiessuchasmobile

clinics,primaryhealthcareclinics,andhospitals.Wemap,discussandanalysethese

inthefollowingsections.

In total, 135 interviews were conducted over a three-month period

(September5-November30,2016).Thisincludedinterviewswith:

• 43undergroundminers(maleandfemale)

• 64surfaceworkers

• 2securityguards

• 10keyinformants

• 4buyers

• 12familymembers

An embedded ethnographic approach was used. This included informal

conversations, narratives, inquisitive observation, non-probability samples and in-

depthinterviews.

InquisitiveObservationsandInformalConversations

Since participant observation as an ethnographicmethod is a process that

takessometimetodevelop,andwasnotentirelysuitableduetothenatureofthe

research, inquisitive observations seemed a viable alternative. Inquisitive

observationsinvolvewhatBester(1995)referstoas“parachuting”,thatis,dropping

intothemidstofasituationfrommultiplepoints;tacitobservationsandinterviews;

theabilitytoaskquestions,therebybecomingestablishedasabonafideresearcher

bybeingseeninterviewing,takingnotesandbeingpresentinthespace.Wedidthis

atallfoursites:twomineshaftentrances,twocourtrooms,onepublichospital,and

severaltaxiranksforaperiodofthreemonthswithacoreteamoffourandafurther

ancillaryteamoftwo.

Given the sensitivenatureof the study, the research team internalised the

questions andwerewaryof producing anypaperwhilst at the research sites. The


team then memorised as much information as possible, and transcribed it

elsewhere.Noteswereonlyjotteddownwheninterviewswereconductedatsome

pre-arrangedplaces.Theinformalconversationswerealsodoneinthepre-research

period, whereby the researcher visited the research area and struck up informal

conversationswith key informants and people in informal places. The aimwas to

harness networks and contacts to elicit people’s perceptions and feelings on the

subjectunderstudywithoutprovokingasenseofanxietyamongstrespondentswith

regardstotheirpersonalsafety.

Non-probabilitysampling

Snowballsampling

Snowball sampling was conducted to locate one or more key individuals

engaged inASM.Themethodreliedonsocialsponsorship(Bester1995), ingetting

introductions and referrals to participants and key participants. This sampling

methodenablesonetotraceanetworkofparticipants.

Purposivesampling

By locatingkeyparticipantsandaprobablecommunity,purposivesampling

servedthepurposethatfitsthecriteriasetoutintheresearchaimsandobjectives.

As researchers went along in the field, they obtained information about work

structureandteamsthatguidedtheidentificationofpossiblerespondents.

In-depthinterviews

Being naturalistic, autobiographical, in-depth, narrative and non-directive,

the informal interview is modelled on the conversation, as a social event that

enables people to talk about sensitive topics, where they disclose more about

themselves (Holland and Ramazanoglu 1994: 135). The in-depth interviews were

conductedwithminers involved inASM. Theywere centredonunderstanding the

dynamicsof relationships; the reasons theyare insuchavocation;andtheway in

whichauthoritiesandthecommunityregardtheirwork.


FocusGroupDiscussions

Fifteenfocusgroupsofmenandwomenofvariousages,aswellasdifferent

ethnicities andnationalities,were conducted. The aimwas to elicit responses and

conversationsonthewide-rangingissuespertainingtoASM.

DataAnalysis

Thedataanalysiswasinfluencedbythenatureofthedatacollected.Thisled

toa search for anexplanationandunderstandingof concepts and theories,which

willbeadvanced,consideredordeveloped.

GroundedTheoryApproach

Thegroundedtheoryapproach(AbramsonandMizrahi1994)involvescoding

andclassificationoffieldnotesintermsofkeyconcepts,whicharemainlydeveloped

throughtheresearchworkitself.Bybuildingonthecyclicalandspiralperceptionof

the researchprocess,conceptdevelopment,datacollectionanddataanalysis took

placeincloseconjunction.

4.Findings

This section presents the main empirical findings of the study. Using a

groundedtheoryapproach,weidentifyfourkeythemesandorganisethediscussion

aroundthese.

4.1Definitionsandregulations

Miners refer to theirwork not as informal, illegal or even artisanal, but as

‘work’or ‘business’. The commonwordsused todescribe their activities included:

korokoza (‘wearedoingbusiness’or ‘weare trying toearnan income’ inShona).3

Men who are engaged in artisanal mining are known as Gweja and women as

Gwejeleni. Theplural usedextensively in the report ismagweja or themorewell-

known zama-zama, meaning we are hustling or trying. Both are used

interchangeably.

3Shona is one of Zimbabwe’s official languages. Zimbabwe is South Africa’s neighbour to the North, from which the majority of zama-zama we interviewed originated; followed by Mozambicans, Basotho, and locals.


TheissueoflegalityandillegalitypermeatesASMinJohannesburg.Thereare

narrowprovisionsforlegalartisanalsmall-scalemininginSouthAfrica,whichfavour

capitalinvestorswhocannegotiatethebureaucracyneededtoobtainthenecessary

permittomine.Themajorityofsmall-scaleminershaveneitherthemonetary,nor,

attimes,thelegalcapacityrequiredtoobtainpermits.Manyaremigrants,someof

whomareundocumented,whilemanymoreareSouthAfricanswhoworkedinthe

informaleconomy,orwhowereinternalmigrantswithlittleformaleducation.

A prevailing discourse and practice of criminalisation and security strongly

shapeshowminersviewthemselvesinrelationtoothers.Whenaskedwhattheydo,

acommonfirstresponseis,‘wearenotstealing’.

Miners engaged with authorities, both the public police force as well as

privatesecurityguards,whocontrol,andregulatethesiteofmininginmultipleand

strategicways.Theseincludethepaymentofbribesforaccesstosites,ortoevade

arrest, or usingnetworks to create awarning system if police arenearby.Despite

this,wehadwitnessedmanyraidsandarrests,andwereawarethatpartofworkin

this sector involved adopting strategies of survival in the face of the criminality

associatedwithASMinSouthAfrica.

4.2.WorkStructuresandArrangements

At the four research sites,we found an expansive network of employment

and business practices involving a proportional number of men and women. This

includes: underground mining; surface work; supporting economies of food;

childcare;supplyofmaterialsandservicessuchastransport;buyers;andsponsors.A

reportbytheChamberofMinesidentifiesfivetiersofoperationsininformalmining,

at the bottom of which are the miners or, magweja, i who are central to the

functioningofinformalminingeconomiesasexplainedbelow.Theremaininglevels

ofoperationidentifiedinthereportare:


− Tier 2: surface buyers, known in our study as ‘sponsors’, who

‘provideequipmentandmaterialsupporttominers’

− Tier3:‘bulkbuyerswhohavelicensestotradeinmineralsinterms

ofthePreciousMetalsAct’

− Tier 4: ‘national distributors who operate through front

companies’

− Tier 5: ‘international receivers and distributors through

internationalrefineries’

Undergroundwork

Undergroundminingistheprincipalcomponentofartisanalinformalmining.

Thepresenceofa longandwell-established industrialminingsector inthecityhas

resultedinthepresenceofasignificantnetworkofundergroundtunnelsthatstretch

for kilometres throughout Johannesburg.Miners informedus that it is possible to

enterashaftinthewestorcentralpartofthecity,walkseveraldaysunderground,

andemergeintheeasternorsouthernshafts.Attimes,aminerwalksforthreedays

(or up to four kilometres) and at depths of 4000mmetres, or, as one respondent

informedus,toalevel‘whereyoucanpile20busesontopofeachother’,togetto

goldbearing reefs, andworks there for three to fourdaysbefore returning to the

surface.Althoughmanyfollowtunnelsthatexistunderground,attimesminersbore

anddrillnewtunnels.

ThemajorityofthemagwejaweinterviewedwereZimbabwean,althoughwe

alsocameacrossSouthAfrican,Malawian,MozambicanandBasuthominers.Some

of the respondents had worked previously in industrial mining in South Africa or

Zimbabwe;othershadahistoryof informaland low-skilledemployment.Amongst

theformer,geologicalknowledgeoftherockisanimportantresource.Minersstated

that they look for ‘solid rock,which hasmoney’. To know if a rock contains gold,

minersundertaketesting,bychisellingaportionofitintoaplateandsievingit.The

ideaistolookfora“belt”whichissaidtobeastretchofrockrichingolddeposits.


To loosen rock and create passageways miners use dynamite known as

hoora. This process can take several days, as conditions are difficult. As one

magwejaputsit,“it’suswhoaretherealsoldiers”,referringtothebraveryandhard

workthatinformalminingdemands.

Minersworkinnarrowridges,withlittlelightorventilation,intemperatures

up to 50 degrees centigrade. To survive, miners strip down into trousers or

underpantsonly, anduseheadlamps to see. Inareaswhereventilation ispoor,or

oxygensupplylimited,minershavedevelopedasystemusinghosepipestobreathe.

Workinginsmallgroupsoffourtosix,someminerswillstayinhighershaftswhere

oxygensupplyisgood,holdingontoahosepipe.Otherminerswillcarrythealternate

endofthehosepipewiththemastheydescendfurther,anduseittobreatheonce

theyreachlowerdepthswheretheywillwork.Oncerocksarechippedoffabeltand

broken intopieces that areeasier tohandle, theyare loaded intomakeshift sacks

and backpacks and carried back to the surface. To survive underground, a similar

economyexists,whichsupplies food,usuallypapandsoftdrinks,athighly inflated

prices.

Onthesurface,minerswalkortakepublicminibustaxistoreachthesurface

operations.Duringourresearch,wemetmanyminerswhowereenteringorleaving

shafts, the latter covered in dust as they emerge into daylight after days

underground.Attheentranceofashaft,minerswillwashusingplasticbottlesthat

are discarded, batteries from headlamps are dotted across the entrance, and

packagescarrying rocksarecoveredand rearranged.At the same time,othersare

beginningtheirwork.Usingholescutinfences,orroughpathwaysacrosstheopen

grassland, miners wearing dark clothes and caps huddle at the entrance as they

prepare their equipmentbeforedisappearing into the shaft: head torches, chisels,

dynamite,andsomewaterandfood.

It is difficult to estimate earnings from the magweja. However, there is

agreementthat‘strikingitbig’bydiscoveringasignificantgoldbearingrockcanyield


asmuchasR50000ormore.Atypicalweek’sworthofminingusuallycanbringR10

000,whensoldtobuyers.

Surfacework

Surface work consists of three tasks: grinding or crushing, draining and

mercury.Atthefoursitesofourresearch,surfaceworkisdoneinvariousspaces.At

the site we coded ‘M’, there is in a long stretch of open land behind a line of

informalhousing (shacks).Thezama-zama rent thespace from local landlordsand

payonaverageR400amonth.Thatareaistheirworkspace,andtheylivebehindin

theinformalsettlement.Atthesitewecoded‘B’and‘J’respectively,workisdonein

amoresecludedthicket,whichusedtobeaminecompound,andwhichhassince

been demolished. At the site we coded ‘D’, the sites themselves are located in a

bushhiddenfromviewfromamajorroad,whichlies200metersaway,withsomeof

theactivitiesoccurringinthebackyardsofhousesnearby.

Theminersuseconcreteslabs,whichwereoncethefoundationsofbuilding

andhouses,forgrinding.Theflatandtoughsurfaceisidealtogrindandcrushrocks

intherequiredmanner,althoughitresultsinchappedhandsandknees,aswomen

workonallfours,andthewhiteoftheconcretereflectsaharshglareunderthesun.

Drainage, which consists of washing the ground sand several times, is done on

structures that are especially built for that purpose. Typically, a drainage site

involvesseveralpipes,washareasandsieves,setupoverastretchofland.

Surface work is structured according to shifts typically from 6am to 2pm.

Somedon’tworkonSundays if theyarechurchgoers.On the faceof it, thezama-

zama are organised inwhat they call syndicates, a group of between two and 10

people,usuallywomen.Anyonebringingwork,thatis–rockstobeground,crushed

orwashed– iscalleda“customer.”Syndicatemembersmaycompriseofclosekin,

ethnic and national compatriots, but could also consist of a group of unrelated

strangers, who may have merely met amongst the mining communities. The

syndicateisoverseenbyasurfaceleader,whoisresponsibleforworkarrangements;


maintaining a storeroom where work equipment – such as iron balls and

maphenduka (gas cylinders, known asmaphenduka because of the rolling action

theyperformincrushingthestones)–arekept,andliaisingwithcustomers.

Syndicatemembers are grouped as a network,where eachmember either

specialisesincertainaspectsofwork.Forexample,someworkasgrinders,somein

drainage, and others in burning the gold, or in multiple positions. Syndicate

members are not considered employees, but equal partners in a complex and

sophisticated work arrangement. Newcomers, especially women, start off as

grinders, “working” for eithermagweja or syndicate leaders, and arepaid per 20-

litrebucketofsoil thattheygrind.The leaderpaysthesyndicatemembersawage

thatvaries;atypicalamountreportedtousisR600aweek,butthisdependsonthe

amountofworkdone.Membersarealsopaidinkind,bykeepingtheleftovergold-

bearing soil known asmavovo,which can be further refined and sold directly by

memberstobuyers.

Theamountearneddiffers.Forsomewomengrindingrocks,a20litrebucket

takes a day, and earns R100, in addition to the remaining sand, which is further

refined.A20litrebucketofrockcanyieldaboutfiveorsixgramsofgold,whichis

soldatslightlybelowthemarketprice.

Buyers

After processing on the surface, the gold is sold to buyers at a price

determined by the international market. During our research, gold was sold to

buyersforbetweenR480toR510agram.Oncesoldtoabuyer,thegoldthenenters

theformalmarketeitherdirectlytotraderswhohavepermitsandshopsthatdealin

gold,orindirectlythoughotherbuyerswhowillreselltothetraders.Thisconstitutes

Tier 3, as outlined by the Chamber of Mines. Amongst surface and underground

workers,thistierisreferredtoasthe“market”,madeupofthoseplacesincentralin

JohannesburgorRoodepoortthattradeingold.


Wewitnessedafewtransactionsandinterviewedfourbuyers.Thesearrivein

the informal settlement inmiddle- to upper-range cars,waiting under a treewith

engine running, and call a contact, who will hustle over to the car to converse

througharolled-downwindow.Thetwothenemergeandgotoaninformalhouse,

wheregoodsandmoneyareexchanged.Someof thebuyersmeasure thegoldon

scalesthattheybringalong,althoughminerssometimescomplainthatthesescales

arenotaccurate.Astheentiretransactionisincash,andinvolvessumsuptoR100

000,buyerstakeprecautionstoensuretheirprotection,bringingbodyguards,and

carryingarms.Themajorityofthebuyersdonotliveintheminingcommunities,but

in suburbs, although they do employ assistants who live locally, who will act as

middlemenfor thebuyers.Forbuyers, thereareother risks too: tradingwithouta

licenseisillegal,andbuyersarewaryofthepolice,whotheysayaremorelikelyto

confiscatetheirmoneyand/orgold,ratherthantoarrestthem.

4.3.Socialrealitiesandevery-daylifeinminingcommunities

Although the mining communities each have their own characteristics (in

termsofhousingstructures,populationsizesetc.),theysharecertaincharacteristics.

Thedrivewestof Johannesburg is ableakone,ona flat andbarrenpatchof land

dottedwithindustrialsitesandcrossingrailwaylineshewnintotheroad.Toaccess

oneofthecommunities,weturnsharplyfromthemainandbusyroadontoanarrow

strip,andduckbehindarowoftreestofindasteepbank,whereabout100people

aremillingaround,workingandsittingonpainttinsundertrees.Aminedumplurks

aheadofus,andwecanhearthecarswhizzby,onthebusyroadnearby.Thefirst

senseoftheplace,andonethatlingers,isthatofdeprivationandurgency.Informal

housing, dusty roads, children playing in asphalt, broken glass everywhere; yet

peopleworkingrapidly,organisingstructuressetuptofacilitatedrainage,grinding,

menwalkingacrossthefieldwithsacksofrock,womencarryingbucketsofwaterto

andfro,whilstothersstokeawoodfireontheground,preparingtocook.Itisbarely

10amandalreadytheplaceisheavingwithlife,productivityandenergy,allamidst

thepovertyandinformality.


The desperation we find here is echoed in the story of a man we meet.

ArmindoisfromMozambique,andhetellsabouthisbrother,whowaskilledashort

while ago in the same area in which we sit, by other Mozambicans after being

accusedof sleepingwith anotherman’swife.We are told there is no trust in the

police here, and indeed the police are known infamously here for their common

raids, arrests and requests for gold. There is little faith in a government that is

ostensibly far removed from this area. No proper services of housing, healthcare,

water,educationorsanitationaretobefound.The2011censusnotesthatthereare

744 people living in an eight-square kilometre area, which is clearly a massive

undercount,eventoouruntrainedeyes.Censusesareseverely limitedbelowward

level, but regardless of this, the absence of any clear data on the area from

authoritiesoranyphysicalgovernmentservicesisastarkreminderoftheinvisibility

ofgovernment in thiscommunity,andtheresultantalternatenodesofpowerand

regulationthatexists.

Extra-maritalaffairsand‘jolling’(partying),asitsreferredto,arereportedto

be common. The reason we were told, is because of the compound life, where

people are living in close proximity to each other, and where unemployment is

widespread, which means that many young and older men spend the day sitting

outside,anddrinking.Poverty isanothercause,asminershavemoney,whichthey

arehappytospendonandsharewithpartners,leadingmanytoengageinmultiple

relationships.

Somemalezama-zamaenterintorelationshipswithlocalwomanwhoowna

low-cost government house, the so-called ‘RDP’ house, which litter the area. In

returnforaccommodation,heprovidesgroceriesandpaysschool fees. Ifheshirks

this responsibility, the relationship ends and he is ejected from the house, or as

respondentstoldus,“thewomanspitshimout”.Hethen“remembersthefamilyhe

had forgotten,” until he strikes it rich again in mining and takes up with a new

woman.


One localmastaand,or landowner, told us about a neighbourwhose sons

and lodgershadanaltercation.Policewere called inbecause it began to circulate

that thehousewouldbepetrolbombed. Itemerged thata lodgerhaddiedat the

housesometimeago,andnoritualsofcleansingweredone,whichiswhythehouse

alwaysexperienced“trouble”.Themastaand saidshe tellsher lodgersshedoesn’t

want any police in her yard, because, at a neighbour’s house, the police came,

parkedtheirvehiclebehindherhouse, renteduniformstosomeonewhoposedas

anofficer,andwenttocollectgold,containingsoilfromazama-zama.

Gender

Women mainly work on the surface grinding, draining or running market

stalls where they sell food and wares to miners. Many have partners who work

underground, who will supply them with rocks. Others engage in transactional

relationships,includingsex,toensureasupplyofwork.

Therearestrongbeliefsandsocialnormsgoverninggender.Womenarenot

permitted to go underground, as thiswill anger the spirits, and result in death or

injury.An incidentretoldonthesurface isofacasewhereawomanattemptedto

enteramine, resulting ina rockfall thatkilled twenty-eightpeople.Alongside this,

there are other dangers too. Participants mentioned that women who go

undergroundriskbeingraped,whichledonewomantoresorttogoingunderground

onlywithhermalecousinsasherbodyguards.

Women in informal mining have been increasingly asserting their

independence. Some are syndicate leaders and employ men whom they pay at

regularintervals.Ayoungwomantoldusthatshehasemployedherformerteacher.

Some likeMaNcane fromZimbabwe startedworking at sixteenand today shehas

builtahomeandboughtseveralcows.Normally,shegoeshometwiceayear.Some

arebuyingresidentialstandsbackhome,anderectingimposinghouses.Onefemale

syndicateleadertoldusshewasthefirsttobrewteainM,whereothersfollowed.

Shecould,onagoodday,makeaboutR1500.


Women usually begin as grinders. They may also engage in peripheral

activities, known as a support economy, viz. selling food, drinks or alcohol. One

femalebuyer,afterstartingasagrinder,usedhersavingsamountingtoR10000to

shifttierstobecomeabuyer.

There are alsomany female dealerswho supplyminerswith dynamite, an

important resourceneededtoblast rockunderground.They toldus that theydeal

with “hot” items, a colloquial name usually used for stolen goods, used to evade

police.Dynamitedealersoperateinhighlevelsofsecrecy.Unlikeotherminerswho

work as a team, the dynamite trade is a solitary one, which doesn’t require any

involvementofothers.Sincedynamiteisillegal,andalicenseisneededtobuyand

sell it, many buy it from Zimbabwe, and smuggle it across the border. One

participantwasoncearrestedatBeitBridgeBorderPostinpossessionofdynamite,

butwasbailedoutafteramonth,becauseshehadavalidpassportwithvisa,aswell

asafixedabode.Shepaida lawyerR12000andafineofR50000togainrelease.

Once inSouthAfrica,dynamite is stored in ‘safeplaces’whichwewere shown. In

order to trade, some women have informal trading stalls, which sell legitimate

goods, such as food. Dynamite is often bought on credit, and dealers risk non-

payment.

Otherrisksalsolurk:dynamiteisusedextensivelyinorganisedcrimeinSouth

Africa in thebankingsector,especially forATMrobberies.Thus,beingarrestedfor

thepossessionofdynamitecanleadtosuspicionofinvolvementinorganisedcrime

networks.Allthedealerswemet,however,saidthattheyonlysupplydynamiteto

miners.

Demandwaslowduringoutfieldwork,duetothemassarrestsofzama-zama

ashortwhileearlier.Therewasconfiscationofgoodsbypolice,andthenumerous

dealerswhohadenteredthetrade.Thedealersalsocomplainedofsnitching,which

isrife,givenrisebyjealousyamongstdealers.


Womenintheminingcommunitiesareparticularlyvulnerabletocrime.Rape

andgang rapeare reported tohave spiked.Criminal gangsbreak into thehouses,

drag thewomanout to the bush, and rape her until dawn. For this reason, some

womenenterintorelationshipsofconveniencewithmenwhohavenotpaidlobola,

forprotectionandsecurity,andtobringanairof“respectability”tothehome.This

maynotbeenough.Criminalsmayrapethewomanortakeherhostageeveninthe

presenceofaman.Womencaninturnbeluredbycriminalsonthepretextofwork,

andgetrapedonceisolatedbeyondearshot.

Incidentsofdomesticabusewerereportedtous.Onewomanwasseverely

beatenbyherlive-inmalepartner,andhospitalised.Staffthereurgedhertoopena

domesticabusecaseagainsthim,butsherefused,citingherloveforherpartner.

Finally, women bear the major responsibility of childcare. There are no

registeredearlychildcarefacilitiesinanyofthethreeoftheareaswevisited.Inthe

fourth, a crèche was found to be severely overcrowded. Many mothers felt that

crècheswereunsafe,astherewerenotadequatequalifiedstaff,and,asonemother

putit,“alltheydoisplay-theylearnnothing”.Asaresult,manywomenworkwith

young children alongside them, someon their backs, as they grind and crush. For

schoolchildren, there are other problems: undocumented migrants, including

children could not able to access government schooling, and many send their

childrenhometoZimbabwetobecaredforbyextendedfamily.Splitfamilieswere

therefore the norm amongst our sample. Home visits are, furthermore, irregular,

andmaysometimesonlybetwiceayear.

Networksandeconomiesofaffinity

Thereisastrongsharedperceptionongoldamongstminers,whoholdthat

“gold lasts forever”. This represents the ‘value chain’ of informalmining,whereby

one bucket of gold can bring about income, and sustain the livelihoods of many

people, from underground workers to buyers and end users; a process which is

cyclical.Asonerespondentnoted:


Themagwejabringgoldcontainingrocks,givethemtogrindersor

they lend themaphenduka, the payment is residues of the soil,

mavovo. Themaphenduka owner or grinders or drainage owners

processes the mavovo, leave them for others and so on. The

mavovo can be recycled for close to a decade, and the processor

still gets something from them. Thus, for zama-zama, gold lasts

forever’.

Despitethedeprivationofthe informalsettlements inwhichminingoccurs,

respondentsagreethatmining isprofitable,orasonesaid, ‘noonestarves’.Ofall

thesites,M,whichisthemostdenseintermsofpopulationanddangerousinterms

ofcrime,issaidtobetherichest,asithasthemostaccesstoshafts.

However, alongside the presence of profits lurk several challenges. The

amountofmoneymadedependson thepriceof gold, thequalityandquantityof

gold recovered, and the absence of any policy raid or criminal activity on the

business. Alongside this, competitionwithin the sector is stiff. Between 2012 and

2016,twonewsurfacesitesemergedintheareasinwhichweconductedresearch,

where respondents say that new members join the sector every day. One

Zimbabweanparticipanttoldusheisconsideringreturninghometostartafarming

andlivestockbusinessonceheraisesenoughcapital,ashisprofitshavediminished.

Nonetheless, we encountered as well as heard tell of zama-zama who have

prospered from informal mining. We saw miners driving expensive vehicles, and

others who had moved up the supply chain to become influential buyers. Those

zama-zama who have accumulated capital are known amongst the surface and

underground miners as “big shots”, who can afford to buy larger amounts of

mercury, cyanide, electric blasters, and dynamite. This enables them to become

“sponsors,”thatis,theycanfinancemagwejatogounderground.Themorecapital

thatisinvested,intermsofequipmentorlabour,thegreaterthereturn.

Miner attitudes to money earned from gold is, taken generally, complex.

Despite the significant amount of cash trading hands each day,miners appear to


spendmoneyasquicklyastheyearnit.Partofthisstemsfromabeliefarticulatedby

severalrespondentsthatmoneyearnedfromgoldmustbespentandenjoyed,and

not save,where to do sowould be bad luck. Rather, there is a shared belief that

spendingmoney leads tomoremoneybeingearned.Thereareother reasons too:

many said that theydonot knowhow to budget, thatmoney flowing in regularly

doesn’trequirethemtosave,andthatmostdon’thavebankaccounts,duetoalack

ofdocumentationwhichresultsincashbeingbothkeptandspenteasily.Almostall

the respondents stated that spending large sumsofmoneyquicklywas thenorm,

and that contingency simplymeantone couldearnmore if needed. This reaffirms

the earlier sentiment expressed by thosewe interviewedwho spoke of gold as a

mannerofinfiniteresource.

Consequently, many are severely indebted to informal loan sharks or

mashonisa.The interestattachedto the loanranges fromfiftypercent toseventy-

five percent. Some mashonisa follow clients who no longer need a loan, and

persuadethemintoborrowingbysaying,“myfriend,didwefightthatyounolonger

cometome?”Minersrefertomashonisaloansas“analbatrossaroundournecks”.

Participants recounted thatmashonisa loans keepone inperpetualdebt, and that

failure to honour loans has dire consequences, including physical harm by the

mashonisaortheirbodyguards,orthedestructionoftheirproperty.

SocialRelationshipsinMiningCommunities

Zama-zama enter informal mining through a network of connections. For

migrants, entry into South Africa begins with work in low-skilled or informal

employment,suchasdomesticwork,construction,insmallshopsorsecurity,where

wages are low, typically aroundR2000-R3000 amonth,where hours are long and

exploitationbyemployersisrife.

Graduallymanybecomedissatisfied,especiallyas theyrealise thehighcost

of living in Johannesburg. Through word of mouth, from friends, kin, and

compatriots,many of our respondents turn to informalmining,wherewages and

incomearebetter.Somebegintheworkpart-time,goingintoshaftsontheweekend


orduringlullsintheirparttimeemployment,butsoonrealisetheycanmakemore

money in informal mining. As one participant related, once he had in only one

weekendmadetheequivalenttohismonthlypayasasecurityguard,hedecidedto

becomeafulltimezama-zama.Sincemanyofourrespondentswereundocumented

ordidn’thaveworkpermits,theyfacedlimitedlabourmarketoptions.

Forlocals,highunemploymentinurbanandruralareasdrivesmanytoseek

employmentandopportunityinJohannesburg.AmongstSouthAfricanrespondents,

there were those who worked informally, trading at street corners and doing

construction, before moving to ASM for the same financial reasons as migrants.

Others (including three non-nationals) had been involved in industrial mining for

decades,where,onceretrenched,theytookupASM.

All the respondents agreed that informalminingoffers a greater degreeof

controloverhoursofworkandincomelevel.Asignificantnumbercomewithnoidea

abouttheintricaciesofminingandminingeconomies.Skillsandknowledgeisfreely

shared,wheretherecipientsbecomeexpertsandinturnsharewhattheyknowwith

newcomers.

The knowledge economies of informal mining are therefore organic and

collective. Informal mining relies heavily on teamwork, collaboration and

cooperation. For example, at a drainage owned by a Shangani man from

Mozambique,thereareShanganifromMozambique,SouthAfricaandZimbabwe.In

someworkspaces,thereareamixtureofpeoplefromdifferentareasandcountries,

andtheysharebothknowledgeandproceeds.

But this is despite the very real challenges that exist. Inone site there is a

denseconcentrationofpeople ina small area.Theminingcommunitiesaremulti-

ethnicandmulti-national.Participantsdescribeditasa“compoundwheredifferent

kinds of people live”.Within this space there is an abundance of alcohol, flowing

freelyatallhoursoftheday,leadingtosquabbles,fightsandmoreviolentformsof

confrontation,whichcanend indeath.Alongside this, thevastamountsofmoney

thatflowthroughtheareaalsocreatesstrongrivalries,tensionsandjealousies.


Under these conditions nonetheless, networks of solidarity and affinity

permeate.Wetalkedtoamanwithascaronhis face,a resultofanunderground

accident.Hespentalmostayearinhospitalasaresult,andwhenweaskedhowhe

survived economically during that time, he waved his hand around and said, “all

thesepeoplehelpedme.”

Police

Policebrutalityandharassmentwererecurrentthemesintheconversations

weheldwiththeparticipants.Policeaccusethezama-zamaofstealingthecountry’s

mineralresources,anallegationzama-zamacounter,becausetheybelievethegold

is inabandonedshaftsminedbytheirownhardwork,andthatthemoney isused

locally, where it necessarily boosts local economies. They argue too that former

criminalshaverecoursetoanhonestlivinginthedecisiontobecomezama-zama.

If caught,policedemandbribes ranging fromR20-R1000,whichmeans it is

necessarytoalwayscarrymoneytobribethepolice,aminertellsus.Policearesaid

tobreakintostoreroomsandconfiscateequipment,personalbelongings,andeven

thesoilwhich theysell tootherminers.Somepoliceareevensaid to,on theiroff

dutydays,entertheshaftstominegoldthemselves.Participantssaythepolicehave

cometorealisethatthesoilitselfcontainslotsofmoney.Inthiswaytoo,thepolice

areentangledintotheminingeconomies,withsomesaidtoresisttransfertopolice

stations far away from the mining communities for fear of the loss of attendant

opportunity.

Confiscationofequipmentisahugesetbackfortheminers,whohavetostart

afresh. Thus, it is necessary for one to have savings somewhere.Whenpolice see

toolslikenylontowelsusedindrainages,chisels,hammersandmaperengende(rags

used asworkwear bymagweja) they take them and accuse the owners of being

illegal miners. When police see a ‘dirty-looking’ person, they ask them for an

ID/passportandlayachargeofillegalmining,evenifthereisnotangibleevidenceof

such. The social life of clothing,maperengende, is instructive here. It is enough


reason forone tobearbitrarily stoppedandsearchedbypolice.Drainageworkers

buy nylon towels from shops in Roodepoort, and the shop owners aswell as the

itinerantsellerspreferanonymitytoavoidthepolice.

Thepolicealsoconfiscatesoil,whichtheythenselltogrindersfromwhichto

profit.When they stopandsearchpeople, they takepersonalbelongings like cash

and cell phones, orwhatever is on the person. The victims have no recourse and

cannot report it because they are undocumented. At police stations, the police

demanddocumentationwhen theminersare reportinga crime. Inone incident,a

police member had taken R5000 from a storeroom, which he claimed was from

proceeds of illegalmining. One participant told us that a policeman took her cell

phoneandtablet;whenshereportedthematterwithherdocumentation,shewas

toldtobringawitness.Thisunderscoresthesenseofvoicelessnessthatthezama-

zama attest to, where, since they are considered illegal and criminal, they have

nowheretoreporttheirgrievances.

Those arrested for illegal mining activities face legal challenges, because

manyhavenodocumentstoproveapermanentaddress.Thiscomplicateseffortsat

a bail application,where for example,we followed the story of threeminerswho

stayedsixmonthsinprisonbeforereceivingabailhearing.

A South African house owner related an incident where the amabherete

(members of Tactical Response Team) were investigating possession of an illegal

firearm at a house across the street. The police took R800 from a cabinet in the

house. One woman photographed them as they were doing so, at which they

remanded her phone, only to break it. There is a perception that police are

exploitingpeopleinthearea,especiallytheinformalminers.Relationsbetweenthe

policeandthecommunityaretenseasaresult.


Relationships

Thereare complex relationshipswithinmining communities, a combination

of transactional sex, inequality, patriarchy, abuse, agency and a response to the

prevailingsocioeconomicvulnerabilitythatcommunitiesface.

ParticipantsstatedthatmigrantmenwhocometoSouthAfricaalonealways

findapartnerinthecommunity.Whentheirspousesfollow,theyfindthemanina

relationshipwithanother,leadingtohostility,physicalaltercations,andviolence.We

attended a court hearing of an arrested miner in central Johannesburg. A small

groupoffriendsandfamilyhadgatheredoutsidethecourtroomastheywaitedfor

themattertobescheduled.Itthenemergedthatthearrestedminerhadtwowives,

neitherofwhomhadknownabouttheother,leadingtoloudshoutsandarguments

betweenthetwowomenatthecourthouse.Thefirstwifewasadynamitesupplier,

whohadconsiderablemoneyofherown,andhadhireda lawyertorepresenther

husband.Weweretold itwaswomenlikethesewhowere“too independent”and

“nolongerrespectedtheirmen”.

Nevertheless, at all the research siteswe visited, thereweremorewomen

visible at all hours than men. Together with the money that miners make, the

protectionamancanprovide,andtheresultantaccesstogoldthatsurfaceworkers

cantapinto,thereisfiercecompetitionamongstwomenforrelationshipswithmen.

Afteryetanotherpoliceraidinonesite,whichincludedtheconfiscationofsoil,we

witnessedtheincreasedcompetitionamongsurfaceworkersforwork.Somewomen

providedsexualfavourstomagweja,whichallowedthemtobethefirsttoreceive

thesoil,sincethemagwejaprefertogivethesoiltotheirgirlfriends.

The woman enters a relationship with a man even if she knows he has

multiple sexual partners, or is “diseased”, which is the colloquial word used to

discuss a person livingwithHIVorAIDS.One female participant told us people in

mining communities live as if a “film” life, where female zama-zama sleep with

different kinds of men at a frequent rate, so that they could supplement their


income. The exposure to disease rotating in a sexual network, which is also an

economicworknetwork,isestimatedtobehigh,andadditionalresearchisneeded

tounderstandtheextentofHIVinthecommunity.

RelationsbetweenSouthAfricansandnon-nationals

Participants say xenophobia is almost non-existent in the areas we

researched.Thereasonismainlybecausenon-nationalshavecometoplayacrucial

economicroleinthesecommunities,whichsurvivefromthespin-offsofmining.For

example,amastaandinoneareaearnsuptoR5000amonthinrentalstomigrants;

thisislucrative,andmanyhaveorareextendingbackyardshackstoprovidefurther

housing. Another factor is that miners are physically tough, which provides a

measureofpotentialsecurity.Oneparticipantsaidtheminersare“heroes”,whoare

fearlessandhavethephysicalcapacitytofightbackagainstcriminals.However,one

female dynamite dealer told us that she had concealed her occupation from her

landlord, and that few Zimbabwean compatriots who were jealous of her,

subsequentlyinformedthelandlord,whopromptlyincreasedherrent.

WespokewithoneSouthAfricanmastaandwhohas lived inM for twenty

years. She has six lodgers from Zimbabwe, Malawi and South Africa who live as

“brothers and sisters” and prefer to rent to migrants, as they pay rent on time.

Migrants are perceived to be diligent, and are seen to be assisting in local

livelihoods,sothemastaandalwaysstrivetoprotectthemfromthepolice.Thus,if

any outsiders including the police attack migrant miners, the community rallies

behindthem.

A similar sentiment emerges amongst taxi drivers. Miners said that a few

years ago, they would find it difficult to get into a taxi as people and drivers

complained of their appearance,whichwas understandably dishevelled and dirty,

afterdaysunderground. This changedasminersbegan topaymore for taxi fares,

causing drivers to begin to compete for the lucrative opportunity of fetching the

magwejafromtheshafts.


Through close living arrangements, an integrated local economy, a shared

fear and risk of crime, police and poverty, and inter-marriages and relationships,

non-nationalsareseenaskin,in-lawsandfamily,soSouthAfricanstolerateandeven

openly accept them. During conversations with locals, the term amaborder was

used, which refers to non-nationals who temporarily stay in others’ houses, a

designation thatharksback to themoreestablished traditionof rural lodgers that

havecharacterisedtheinformalsettlementsandtownshipsacrossSouthAfrica.This

was an affinity of sorts tomigrants, and is welcome respite from the hostile and

derogatorySouthAfricantermmkwerekwere(atermofuncertainetymology).

Intheseways,lifegrindsby,markedbyspikesofwealthandthe“highlife”a

minermadewhonow“drivesaHummerand lives in town”,of loose relationships

builtonthesurfaceanddeeperbondsoftrustforgedunderground,andofnetworks

of affinity and convenience. There is as mentioned, the constant threat of police

brutality,ofjealousyandopportunisticallyspurredcrime,offamilyandfriendswho

socialise and argue, of family responsibility at home and here. There are

partnerships and sexual encounters as if “from the films” of flashy cars, the

omnipresenceofloansharksoncegoldisfound,andofcourse,allbalancedonthe

ever-presence of danger for the miner who goes underground and who might

indeednotcomebackup.

4.4.Health,WellbeingandHazards

Informalmining is highlyhazardous– fromundergrounddigging to surface

work.Therisksnotonlyemanatefromthenatureofthework,butalsofromfactors

surroundingthework,wheretheaccrualofmoneyitselfattractsrisk.

Respondentsfurthermorereportedarangeofillnesseswithwhichtheywere

burdened,including:STD’s,TB,andHIV/AIDS,rashes,allergiesandchestpains.

Ontheonehand,thereare injuriescausedbythework itself.Ontheother

hand, there are risks linked with and to the occupation. Thus, we see an


interconnectionbetweenwork and the social and legal environment inwhich it is

undertaken, including for example, crime, unfair treatment at health centres, and

arrestsinhospitals.

Undergroundwork is highlydangerous.Althoughmagwejawearprotective

gear like helmets, overalls and gloves, they sometimes neglect safety measures

because it leads to police to be able to identify them as zama-zama. Given the

narrowtunnels theyhave tonavigateunderground, somecrawlon their stomachs

forgreatlengthsuntiltheirbodiesarescratchedandbleeding.Therearethensome

peoplewho cookundergroundusing primus stoves,which release a toxic gas and

manycomeoutcoughing.Thereisaplaceattheendofthetunnelcalledphelamoya,

meaningthereisnoairoroxygeninthatparticulararea.Undergroundwaterisalso

dirty. Although themagweja believe this area is rich in gold deposits, it is also

dangerous.Theysendoneof their teamstodo thedigging,whileotherspumpair

usingapipeandplasticbag.

Concerns about safety underground lie somewhere between myth, belief,

the real and the pragmatic; in otherwords, between the sacred and the profane.

Whilemining companies left support pillars in the tunnels the constructed, some

magwejaaresaidtojustdigandtakerocksorsoilwithoutfixingthepillarsthathold

back loose rocks, so vigilance is always required. Since there is little order

undergroundbetweenteams,somezama-zamadodiggingthatendangersothers.If

there is an accident underground, tools are downed, and the injured or dead are

brought to the surface, after which no-one is allowed to continue working until

ritualsareperformedtocleansetheshaft.

Above ground, there are a number of factors thatmake thework difficult.

Inclementweather,especiallyduringtherainyseason,affectstheworkofprocessing

whatisbroughtupbytheminersforsale.Surfaceworkers,likegrinders,alsowork

withnomasks,exposingthemtolargeamountsofdust inhalation.Onbeingasked

whytheydon’twearmasks,participantssaidtheyarenotusedtothem,orexplain

that when there are police raids, the masks identify them to police as targets.


Grinders complain of chest pains, back aches andpainful joints. Themagweja are

susceptibletoTBaswell,becauseofundergrounddust.Theyreporttheirsalivato

bedarkenedbythedustthey inhalewhileworking.Participantstoldustheyoffset

theeffectsbydrinkingfreshmilk,whichtheybelievecleansthebody.Whenfemale

grindersfallpregnant,theirworkbecomesallthemoredifficult,butmostcontinue

working,which increases the risks to their unborn children, includingmiscarriage.

Femaleparticipantssaytherearenoclinicsnearbyatwhichtoseekoutassistance,

and that theyget contraceptives fromZimbabwe,which theyprefer to localones.

Sanitarypadsaremeanwhile soldby thehawkerswhodobusiness in thearea. In

oneofthesites,amobilepublichealthcarefacilityisavailableonceamonth,which

providesHIVtesting,andhealthcareadvice.

Participantscomplainabouttheunfairtreatmenttheyreceivewhenableto

attendhealthcentreselsewhere.Non-nationalsreportspendingmanyhoursbefore

they are helped.When one goes to hospital, they don’t give their address in the

mining communities,because thenursesdiscriminateagainst them, saying “zama-

zamaareaproblem”.Whenanartisanalminerisinjuredundergroundandistaken

toahospital,theyareobligedtosaythattheywereinjureddoingcontractwork,as

there have been reports of police arresting injured miners even from within the

confinesof thehospital.Nursesaresaid toberudeto them, forexampleaccusing

non-nationalsofhavingtoomanychildrenandburdeningthehospital.Aparticipant

told us that a woman was once stabbed and then taken to the hospital by her

mastaand, and wasn’t attended to until the following morning, where she was

stitchedupwithoutanaesthetic,merelytoldbynursestoclenchherteeththrough

the ordeal. Non-nationals are, wewere told,made to pay R310-R900 for women

deliveringbabies. Inaddition,documentationisdemandedbeforeanytreatmentis

provided,eveninemergencies.

To counter this, respondents turn to a range of alternative healthcare

solutions. Some participants, Zimbabwean doctors in particular, prefer private

medical practitioners.One female participant told us that she “googles symptoms

andsignsofdisease”.Othersconsulttraditionalhealers.


4.5.Myths,Mythologies,BeliefSystemsandPragmaticRealities

AsangomawespoketocalledNaZinhle,toldusthat,sincegoldisassociated

with spirits, when one comes into money, one is obliged to do a ritual of

thanksgiving– sprinkling snuff andofferingbeer – and should then let themoney

‘sleepover’,beforeusingit.

Beliefs andmyths are strongly embedded in perception of informalminers

and the practices of informal mining in Johannesburg. Many miners seek the

assistance and intervention of sangomas, traditional healers, and/or apostolic

churchestoreceiveprayersforhealthandgoodfortune.

This belief and its accompanying rituals is driven by an underlying

understandingoftheownershipovermineralresources.Miners,andthoselivingin

thefourresearchcommunities,allsharedtheconvictionthatgoldisassociatedwith

spirits,andownedandcontrolledbywaterspirits,callednzuzu.Thenzuzuemanate

from deep water pools, and enter the mines, controlling all that it contains. The

nzuzu move through the labyrinth of the underground mine followed by water,

whichexplainsthefloodinginthetunnelsthatminersoftenencounter.

Thesespiritsmanifestindifferentforms,liketheso-calledmissus,oraswhite

womenorchickens,andothermystical forms,althoughthemostcommonarethe

snakes,oramalinda.Thesecontrolthewealthofthemines.Particularritualshaveto

beconductedtoappeasethesnakes,includingmakingofferingsoffood,andabiding

by certain norms to avoid ill fortune, injury or death. Whenmagweja abandon

injuredordeadcolleaguesunderground,thisangerstheamalinda,whoaresaidto

consider itheartless,whoadminister theirpunishmentthroughrockfallsandother

disasters,thatleadtoaccidentsunderground.

Miningforgold isstronglyassociatedwithpurity;oneshouldnotbe“dirty”

when going underground and one should have a “pure heart” because the nzuzu


spiritsinsistoncleanliness.Thosewhoentershaftsinpossessionofmutiaresaidto

jeopardise others. Certain rules and regulations like refraining from pap ormeat,

wearingcharms,andnotsleepingwithawoman,needtobeobservedinorderfor

theartisanalminertobe‘pure’whenenteringthemines.Furthermore,snuffneeds

tobeplacedattheentranceofeachtunnelandsilvercoinsthrownonthefloorasan

offeringtothespirits.

We were told a story of huge snake called Mandela, whose head or tail

cannot be seen due to its enormous length. Mandela crosses the tunnels at

particulartimes.Onceunderground,onehastowaitfor ittopass.Theareathat it

leavesbehindisrichwithgold.Fourpeopleareknowntohavebenefittedfromthis

knowledge.

The sangoma NaZinhle insists that the snakewill, when upset or angered,

release an asphyxiating gas, known asphelamoya, which causes rocks to fall, and

thatthesnakehurlsrocksatminers,orevenbreathesfire.Minersknowthesmellof

the gas andwhen they sense it, they know the snake is nearby. They thus adjust

theirworkplansandjourneysaccordingly.

However,afewofourrespondentsreportedthatattimesitisnotpossibleto

retreatormoveawaysafelywhenthegasissmelt.Thegascausesthemtobecome

weak, lethargic, and affects their breathing. Some said that to counter this,water

mustbetaken,butotherssaythatmosttendtopanicand,inahastetoescape,are

indangerofsmashingtheirheadsagainstlow-hangingrocks.

Zama-zamabelievethat“strikingitrich”isdependentpurelyonluckandthat

fortunes are not granted equally. Some people use charms andmuti like one old

man,who, if positionedat the frontof the lineunderground,will get all thegold,

where thosewho follow find nothing. Themagweja have resolved that he should

alwaysbethelastinthequeue.Malawiansareforbiddenunderground,becausethe

Zimbabwean magweja, in particular, believe Malawians possess potent charms,

whichleadothersnottobeabletofindanythingwhentheymine.AlltheMalawian

malerespondentswetalkedtoworkonthesurfaceasgrinders.Thecompulsionfor


magwejatoreturnundergrounddespitetherisks,isdrivenbythebeliefthatfurther

riches await them. This is not dissimilar to the early pioneering spiritwhichdrove

miningexplorationinthecountryacenturyandahalfago.

Some participants told us that during the time of industrial mining

operations,thesnakeswouldwriteanamountofmoneyonthebackofaminer,and

theminemanagementwasobligedtoawardthatminerthatamountofmoney.He

wouldthenleavethemines.Ifoneisfavouredbythespirits,awhitewomanappears

in the shaft, takes their hand, and shows them a place richwith gold deposits. A

failure to act collectively, by hastening to get all the gold for oneself, leads to

accidents,andminersarenotallowedtotakeitall,butinsteadareobligedtoleave

somebehind,sincegreedisasourceofprovocationtotheamalinda.

Times of bad fortune, whether due to increased police patrols and

harassment,oralackofbuyers,areattributedtomamhepo/bhadi.Thisrequiresthe

minerstocleansethemselvesbygoingtoMasowe,orsangoma,orgettingcleansed

in their home country. Underground accidents happen especially whenmagweja

strikeabeltandgetgreedy,orwhenpeopleentertheshaftswithforbiddenmaterial

likedrugs,bottles,weaponsandguns.Theamalindadonotlikesmokeunderground,

and retaliate by letting off their own smoke, which, however, is sometimes is

harmless.

Minersliveundertheconstantthreatoffallingrocks.Inthiscase,ritualslike

sprinkling snuffon thegroundandpouring traditionalbeer arenecessary to avert

calamities.Somezama-zamasprinklesnuffontheground,offercoinsandtalkwith

their ancestors and the spirits of themines for protection and good fortune.We

were told some days were off-limits in mines when rituals were conducted.

Participantswhohadworkedinindustrialmining,suchasthewhitemanagersofthe

miningcompanies,understoodthenecessityofrituals.Theminingcompaniesused

to send young virgins draped in white dustcoats underground with offerings of

trunksofmoneytothesnakesthatwouldeatthem,andcontinuetogivegold.For

three days, the mines would be closed. This was usually done in September and

October.


NaZinhle, who offers spiritual services to the mining communities, said

amalindasometimesclosetheshaftsindemandofsacrifices,suchasagoat,money

and beer, which are then undertaken in appeasement. Not just any ordinary

sangomacandotheceremonies;theirdloziorspirit,hastobeinspiritualresonance

withthenzuzuspirit.Thesangomacanpredictdangerandwarntheminers,but if

theydon’theedthewarning,tragicincidentshappen.NaZinhletoldussheoncetold

theminers to sacrificeawhitegoat,but theydidn’t listen. Shortlyafterwards, the

LanglaagteincidenthappenedinSeptember2016,inwhichatleasttwominerswere

killed,while three remained trapped underground for twoweeks, and eventually,

threewerearrested.

Following the Langlaagte incident, therewas a clampdown on zama-zama.

Wevisited the shaftearlyonemorning,whenonlya zama-zamasecurityguard,a

gentle old man from KwaZulu-Natal, stood at the entrance. The area is accessed

throughapublicparkthatisnowinastateofdilapidation.Itisstrewnwithlitterand

usedcondoms,discardedbatterypacks,shoesfromminers,andtheairisheavywith

asenseofdeath.Afewmenfromthepolicedepartmentandminerescueservices

werealsoaround,distributingapoorly-writtennotice,statingthattheshaftwould

besealedinaweek’stime.Theymadeagreatshowofescortingusout,threatingto

arrestaZimbabweancolleagueforaskingtoomanyquestions,andlockingthegate

behindus.As themendroveaway in theiroff-roadvehicles,we lingerednear the

entrance. Gradually, the security opened a small gate on the side, zama-zama

emergedfromthebushes,andjumpedoverthehalf-brokenwall,andwefollowed

them inside toward the shaft. Theauthorities closed themine inaneffort to curb

informalminingactivities.Butthezama-zamaallegethatwhenashaft isclosed, it

suffocates the underground network, because the mine spirits need to breather.

Failuretoopenashaftcanleadtoitexploding,orcavingin.Withinaweek,theshaft

was sealed, amidst much medial attention. The DMR, mine rescue services, and

policecongratulatedeachotherona jobwelldone.Down the road, less than100

metres away, tuckedbehindadump, another shafthadalreadybeenopenedand

undergroundactivitycommenced,astheirfanfarecontinuedonthesurface.


5.Conclusion

Artisanal small-scalemining in Johannesburg is a complexwebof relations,

danger, and risk, operatingwithin and response to extreme conditions of poverty

and unemployment, of urban marginality, a sophisticated economy that provides

opportunity; a criminalisedactivitywith strong threadsof illegalityand informality

weavingthroughworkers,suppliers,buyers,andgoods.Thisreporthasexploredthe

surface of the sector, where, through personal narratives and extensive

ethnographicfieldwork,ithasmerelybeguntocaptureasmallpartofthiscomplex

economyandthecommunitieswhichconstituteandsurroundit,andaresustained

byit.Whilstinnowayconclusiveordeclaratory,afewtentativeassessmentscanbe

madehere.

First,ASMispoorlyunderstoodinpolicyframeworks,amongststakeholders

and in thebroaderpublicdiscourse inSouthAfrica.At itsheart, theworkdoneby

miners in the research is an informal livelihood, undertaken at enormous risk to

themselves. It is in response to limited employment opportunities, a restrictive

regulatoryenvironment,andeconomicneed.Inthis light,theinformaleconomyas

defined by Chen (2006) can be found to strongly resonatewith the nature of the

work,thewaysinwhichandconditionsunderwhichitisundertaken(viz.withbasic

equipment outside of regulatory framework, with no access to social security,

banking or financial services, andwith direct and indirect health and safety risks),

andisevidencedfurthermorebythestigmaattachedtoit.

Second, as an informal and largely individualised economic activity, there

exists strong structures, systems, organisations, and collective action which are

intriguing from labour relations, collective bargaining, and organisational systems

perspectives.Embeddedintheseprocessesaresocialandculturalnormsofgender,

nationality, work ethics and trust. For labour scholars, this provides a fascinating

insight into how modes of production in the informal economy are developed,


negotiated and maintained under conditions of extreme stress, and completely

outsideoflegalororganisationalframeworks.

Third, there is the longer and broader geography of ASM,which stretches

theimmediatephysicalareasinwhichitisdone,andthecontemporaryperiod.This

isreflectedinthesupplychainsoflabourandgoods,theknowledgepasseddownby

generations of industrial and small-scale miners, and the onward production and

saleofminedgold.Yet,italsoreflectstherelationshipandperceptionsminershave

of gold, as much as the environment in which gold is mined and sold. This

approachesanalmostKantianapproachtotheanalysisofASM,as itdescribesand

interprets peoples’ relationships with the physical environment and with one

another,inwhichthereexistsamoralgeographyofnormsandunequalrelationsin

theformofmentalmaps.

Fourth,ASMasacontemporaryurbanactivity is rooted in long-heldbeliefs

andtraditionsthatgovernitsoperations.Here,theroleofmythology,oftraditional

healers, and of spirits’ needs are understood in their contexts, as part of the

everydayrealityofminers.Inthissense,thebeliefs,andritualsassociatedwithASM

can be explained as a sort of culturalmaterialism, thatmake sense to thosewho

engage in it, andwhich canbe rationalisedbyexamining theunderlying causesof

theritualsandbeliefs(Harris1968).

In summary, the people, power, economies, places, practices and

perceptions we found in this study, relating to wealth, employment, natural

resources, policing, gender, social norms, violence, opportunity and risk are, we

argue, amicrocosm of life on the urban periphery in post-apartheid South Africa.

Facingmultiple levelsofexclusionandprecarityatsocial,physical,andlegal levels,

constrainedbyaneconomythatstubbornlyfailstokeeptrackofaburgeoningurban

population, living ina space thatoften fallsoff thegovernment radar for services,

theminers,theirfamiliesandthecommunityinwhichtheyliveareusingASMasa

tooltoclingonandsurvive.


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