Gold panners have unleashed a reign of terror in Malungwane Village in Umzingwane District, Matabeleland South attacking villagers with axes, machetes and knobkerries.
The development has seen the community members sleeping in maize fields fearing being attacked at their homes while asleep.
The gold panners referred to as AmaNkayi as they are said to be coming from Nkayi district, attacking villagers even during the day.
Last Saturday, the group is said to have set base in the nearby mountain from where it is launching forays into the village.
A Chronicle news crew on Thursday visited the village which is about 20km from Esigodini where the community narrated their terror stories.
So timid were the community members that only the village head Mr Zacchaeus Mlalazi, agreed to speak on record.
Upon arrival at the village at about 2pm, the news crew spoke to a woman who was at her homestead but as the crew started talking about the gold panners issue, she politely asked the team to go and talk to the men in the village, directing reporters where to go.
Following her instruction, the news crew visited another homestead where it found a male occupant who admitted that they indeed were having problems with illegal gold panners but also declined to comment about the issue.
He referred the news crew to the area’s village head who was not at home.
The news crew proceeded to a fourth homestead and luckily its occupants although declining to be identified opened up on the harrowing experiences at the hands of the illegal gold miners.
They said some of the villagers are now forced to sleep in the maize fields fearing being raided by the gold panners.
“We have a serious problem; I don’t want to lie to you, I understand when people say they don’t want to speak about it but that is the situation we have here. It’s a long standing problem, we are constantly being brutalised by a group of illegal gold panners that live in that mountain (showing the news crew the mountain). They come here armed with knives, machetes, knobkerries and axes or any dangerous weapon you can think of. They can walk in and just start beating up people for no reason. This happens especially when they have altercations in the gold belt,” said the villager.
He said last Saturday three community members were attacked with axes by the illegal gold panners.
“About a month ago they attacked someone and he fell unconscious in my yard. He was awakened by a light drizzle. The incidents are just countless. We have called the police but they never come. It’s as if we are a neglected community but it will be better if you talk to our village head, he knows all our cries and he will explain better. We don’t know if the police want to come on the ground when there is a body,” he said.
The news crew drove to the village head’s mine claim several kilometres from the village where the old man said he was distressed with the attacks happening to his people.
He said the community has lost faith with the law enforcement agents.
“We have tried to engage the police countless times but not even once have they responded to reports of attacks by these gangs.
“Our boys had to take matters into their hands a few days back and they fought back and captured two of the gang members. I personally phoned Esigodini police to come and take away the criminals but they said they had no car and asked us to bring the criminals to the police station. Our boys who arrested the gang members were part of the team that escorted them to the police station but things took a strange turn at the police station as our boys were arrested for assaulting them. They were charged for assault. The police officers even said the weapons that we brought as evidence belonged to our boys,” said Mr Mlalazi.
-State Media