Groups of men, their faces and clothes caked in dust, were seen by The Citizen running across the road towards the thick brush fencing of the Jerusalem informal settlement in Florida, near Roodepoort, on Wednesday.
Following them into the settlement, two soldiers, guns glued to their chests, walked by, the message clear: the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) was on patrol in a community known for nearby illegal mining.
The SANDF has been deployed to tackle rising gang violence and illegal mining in parts of South Africa.
Residents, including toddlers, teenagers, and parents, quietly stood, staring with curiosity, as five combat vehicles, brandished by several soldiers, prepared for their convoy to find zama zamas.
Two residents spoke to The Citizen, sharing their view that the SANDF’s deployment in Jerusalem was “useless”, pointing to how an alleged secret arrangement between the South African Police Service (Saps) and zama zamas leaves the army stuck in the mud, residents traumatised, and zama zamas on the loose.
‘Today, they are coming’: Saps accused of tipping off zama zamas
A male resident of Jerusalem, who wished to remain anonymous, initially praised their presence in the community but believes that no difference will be made in the grand scheme of things.
“It’s good that they are here,” he began.
“But I’m not sure that this kind of intervention will yield positive results.
“It won’t make any difference because as soon as they leave, [zama zamas] will come back,” he said.
The resident claimed that police in Florida allegedly tipped off the miners for money.
“Those Saps people that work with zama zamas…they told them already that, today, they are coming,” he continued, explaining this gave them a chance to hide.
“When the soldiers leave, around 15 to 20 Saps vans usually arrive to collect the money from the zama zamas.”
Another resident, a woman who also asked for anonymity, joined the conversation and said the miners will also be told when the soldiers have left, so they can come out of hiding.
The army can no longer ‘skop en donner’ like they used to
The Citizen stayed at the settlement as the convoy rumbled away from Jerusalem towards the mines and watched, after a few minutes, as multiple men, in groups of two to six, caked in dust, strided back into the settlement.
“You see, I told you,” said the vindicated resident, pointing at the groups emerging from their hiding spots.
“I don’t even know why they are here. I think this is the third time. It’s a waste of time…the state money… and they are traumatising the kids. This is useless,” she spat.
“It’s not like that time of Covid. During that time, they were said to be ‘skop en donner’, ” continued the resident, referring to the Covid-19 pandemic when South Africans were not allowed on the streets.
Distressed, she also said that the army’s presence poses psychological implications for children who witness “the show”.
“This is just trauma. Now the kids will say they want a gun because they see soldiers with guns.”
“There’s no one policing because they are working together. What they come for is money,” expressed the male resident in frustration.
‘Why don’t they deploy them permanently?’
Both believe that a better solution to combat illegal mining in their community is to remain in the streets at all times. Otherwise, police will continue to allegedly tip off miners.
“Why don’t they deploy them permanently and get rid of the Saps because they are the rotten ones?” said the woman.
She said she could not comprehend how they were spending so many resources on the army instead of their community’s clogged toilets.
“They must root out the problem,” she concluded, believing that there is misdirected attention on the townspeople.
