The portfolio committee on mineral resources and energy stated that it wished to prohibit the selling of used gold in order to fight risky unlawful mining.
Committee members performed supervision visits at illegal mining areas in North West and Gauteng over the last four days.
This comes after multiple allegations of territorial fights between competing zama zama gangs that endanger citizens’ safety.
The committee’s chairperson, Sahlulele Luzipho, stated that members of Parliament will consider revising or creating laws that would prohibit or impose greater restrictions on dealing secondhand gold.
He stated that there was a reasonable suspicion that unlawfully mined gold was being mingled with legal secondhand gold when it was melted down for commercial purposes.
“As a result, we say, let’s stop selling secondhand gold, and if we do, it will be easier to trace where gold is coming from.” So I can blend your gold from the Free State, where they refine it, with the gold they get from Krugersdorp, and you won’t know where it came from.”