Originally published at National Catholic Register
Residents and human rights groups have reportedly criticized South African authorities for blocking food and water supplies to the illegal miners.
The hundreds of illegal miners stuck in a disused mine in Stilfontein in South Africa’s North West Province are human beings whose dignity should be respected, said Bishop Sithembele Sipuka, president of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference.
In a statement published Jan. 3, Bishop Sipuka of South Africa’s Mthatha Diocese, weighed in on the situation of the illegal miners who have been trapped since last November.
“The Stilfontein illegal mining saga is too complex,” Bishop Sipuka said, alluding to reports that law enforcement agencies have blocked food and water supplies to the miners to force them to resurface so they can arrest them for illegally searching for leftover gold in the abandoned mine.
The fact that most of the illegal miners are reportedly foreigners is part of the complexity, the bishop noted.
The challenge of the situation of illegal mining, Bishop Sipuka said, “includes the question of legality and law when it comes to people entering the country illegally, as it is alleged that most of the illegal miners are foreign nationals.”
“Then there is a question
