BDF, Police crack on illegal mining activities

Lesedi Mkhutshwa | Tuesday April 22, 2025 13:14

Over the years, villages near the Botswana-Zimbabwe borderline including Matsilole, Matshelagabedi, Matopi, Patayamatebele and others have been battling with alarming cases of illegal mining and cross border crimes. Early this year, it was reported that following numerous failed attempts to rescue an illegal miner who was trapped in an old mine shaft, his body decomposed underground. Furthermore, in December last year, it was reported that a Zimbabwean man was trapped when an old mine shaft in Matsiloje collapsed on him whilst digging for gold. Addressing a kgotla meeting recently in one of the affected villages, Matshelagabedi, Mohwasa said the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) collaborated with Botswana Police Service (BPS) from KAMANI 1 operations to fight against illegal mining and cross border crimes. He added that 88 police officers and 20 soldiers including the Special Support Group (SSG) have been deployed to patrol in the affected villages. Mohwasa indicated that the BDF officers are patrolling the Rainbow old gold mines, Signal Hills, Patayamatebele whereas the police are patrolling along Kalakamati (old Shashe farms), Francistown, Tachila farms, Albert Farms and others. He said the new police station, which will be completed soon, will also come in handy to answer some of the people's grievances regarding crime.

He said they are a listening government and are there to serve the people who voted for them. Mohwasa stated that statistics have proven that a lot of illegal mining and cross-border crimes are committed by illegal immigrants. For instance, he gave an example that Matshelagabedi, which is just a stone's throw away from the Botswana-Zimbabwe borderline and near the second city of Francistown, has been greatly affected by illicit mining. He said as earlier discussed, probably it was high time villagers in the area were granted rights to mine in the area so that they can take care of the mineral resources and gain economically. Mohwasa also suggested that there is a need to empower the Village Development Committees (VDCs) so that they can be independent just like community trusts. He said the empowerment of VDCs will help in exploring ways near mineral deposits and tourism attraction areas so that they can benefit from such. He said they have realised that the alarming cases of illegal mining and such the government took a deliberate decision to send a task force so that they can see how villagers from areas, which had abandoned mining benefit from such natural resources.

According to Mohwasa, a few ministers have been included in the task force so that they can see how areas such as Matopi, Selebi-Phikwe, and Orapa are benefiting from the natural resources in their areas. Regarding the statistics ,Mohwasa indicated that in 2022 ,about 10 illegal miners from Zimbabwe were caught mining gold illegally. He said that in 2023 there were 12 Batswana and 72 Zimbabwean who were arrested for the illicit mining of gold. 'In 2024 there were three Batswana and 49 Zimbabweans who were arrested for illegal mining. In 2025 there five people were prosecuted for illegal mining,” he added. In an interview with Mmegi, Matsiloje village Kgosi, Eric Moipolai, welcomed the government KAMANI 1 operation as a positive development. He is happy that after the address by the minister, there was a police helicopter flying around the village as part of patrolling the area. Moipolai further said the villagers were living in fear due to the illegal miners in the area. He reported that the same illegal immigrants were travelling in a large group of about 50 to 100 people and believed that they were overpowering the deployed police officers on patrol. They hide in the thickets and they terrorise villagers in the neighbouring cattle posts and lands. He stated that the same illegal miners were also affecting their environment through land and air pollution as they throw litter indiscriminately in the thickets, which could also affect the domesticated animals. The Kgosi expressed hope that the operation would provide a permanent solution to illegal mining and cross-border crime so that they could live in peace.