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Transcript/Script((INTRO))
[[As industrial mining is expanding in Namibia to meet international demand, small-scale miners whose families have worked the land for generations say they are being displaced. Vitalio Angula has the story from Uis, Namibia.]]
((NARRATOR))
With an iron chisel and hammer in hand, Richeline Tanises hammers a rock
on a hilltop not far from where she lives, in the mountainous settlement of Uis.
Tanises is part of an impoverished community largely made up of small-scale miners who for centuries have made a living selling jewels and minerals like tin, copper and crystal.
The Ministry of Mines and Energy spokesperson, Eshioshange Hasheela, tells VOA the
authority has at least 5,000 to 10,000 registered small-scale miners in its database, some of whom are operating outside the laws.
((Eshioshange Hasheela, Nambia Ministry of Mines and Energy Spokesperson)) ((Male, in English))
“There are still those small-scale miners which are still mining illegally. Sometimes it is simply because they believe they were born there; they have been doing that before all these requirements came about. But yes, there are a lot of other unregistered small-scale miners which are mining illegally, and this is a challenge from the regulator point of view.”
((NARRATION))
But legally or illegally, there is a family tradition of mining in this region that precedes the large-scale industrialization of the area.
((Richeline Tanises, Small-Scale Miner)) ((Female, in English))
“The thing is our grandparents were mining already in this area and that is why we are
also mining in this area because we learned from them. If they feed us with the tin and
then we see how our elders were doing that is why we are following in their footsteps.”
((NARRATOR))
John Andrew Kelly is an activist in the Uis.
((John Andrew Kelly, Community Activist)) ((Male in English))
“But we are poor people, my lord, we are poor, poor, poor people. Most of us after the
re-opening of the mine were hoping for the green pastures which has come like a
crocodile is waiting in the water and the food is coming to them, we feel like we will
enjoy the fruits but it’s not like that. This is the time we are being more oppressed.”
((NARRATOR))
He says the miners have been displaced by huge corporations such as Australia’s Andrada Mining and China’s Xinfeng Investments. These large multinational corporations now own the land the indigenous or “artisanal miners” have been working.
((NARRATOR))
Andrada mining, registered in South Africa, with headquarters in the United Kingdom, says, “there is no artisanal mining activity” in the company’s “current footprint,” Andrada’s spokesperson told VOA.
Xinfeng Investments on the other hand said the company “recognizes” the small miners’ presence and is willing to work with them, but “they have not been approached officially or unofficially by any of the small-scale miners for consent to mine within the boundaries of their mining premises.”
Authorities admit these indigenous mining areas are now private land. To solve the problem, government officials say they are consulting with the mining giants to allow the small-scale miners access to these areas.
((Vitalio Angula, VOA News, Windhoek, Namibia.))
NewsML Media TopicsEconomy, Business and Finance, Labour
Topic TagsAfrica Central, africacentral, AC, Africa, Africa Division, africadivision, AD, VOA Africa, Africa Central News
Season Number2023
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)Namibia
English TitleNamibia Small-Scale Miners
Embargo DateDecember 1, 2023 14:44 EST
Description EnglishAs industrial mining is expanding in Namibia to meet international demand, small-scale miners whose families have worked the land for generations say they are being displaced. Vitalio Angula has the story from Uis, Namibia.
