Published by the government of Zimbabwe
30 June 2009
editorial
Harare — LAST week hundreds of fortune-seekers descended on Zouma resettlement area in Gutu after the discovery of alluvial gold at a disused mine.
For Zimbabweans, gold and diamond rushes are not new phenomena.
The eastern district of Chiadzwa over the past few years was stripped bare by people searching for diamonds.
The Midlands province has borne the brunt of the exertions of gold panners.
And now, just when the authorities have managed to bring back sanity to Chiadzwa, it looks as if it is Masvingo's turn.
It is hoped that the authorities have learnt lessons from recent past experiences and Zouma will not become the site of the kind of undesirable activities witnessed in other resource-rich areas of Zimbabwe.
What is worrying is that the Zouma gold rush is coming at a time when the authorities are yet to convince us that they are winning the battle in the gold-producing regions of Midlands Province where illegal mining has become rampant.
There are many reasons why the State should move in quickly to secure the area.
The first, and most obvious one, is that illegal mining does not benefit the nation in any way. These are resources that should be harnessed for national development.
It is, therefore, in our best interests as a country, to ensure that these resources are legally and sustainably exploited.
Zimbabwe lost millions of dollars from the adventures of diamond-hunters in Manicaland.
The nation is still losing incalculable revenue from the activities of gold panners in the Midlands province and other parts of the country.
Can we really afford to lose out again in Masvingo?
The State should deploy law enforcement agents immediately and efficiently to assess the situation in Gutu.
Then there is the issue of crime and the security of persons who might not even have anything to do with the illegal gold mining activities in the area.
We have all heard the terrifying reports of how people killed each other at the Chiadzwa diamond fields.
We have heard of how crime has been a problem in the Midlands areas where gold panners thrive.
Innocent people have been caught up in the violence that follows illegal mining activities.
As such, security agents must move in quickly to ensure that the situation remains normal and people are guaranteed their safety.
But even if the gold deposits there are not in large enough quantities to excite the interest of the State and large mining companies, it would be worthwhile to secure the area for the sake of the environment.
Many of us have seen images of how people can strip an area of vegetation, leaving it bare and open to the elements.
This unbalancing of the ecosystem can have dangerous consequences for local communities and this is something that should seriously concern the Government.
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