The big profits from illegal gold mining surge to the criminals at the top who launder the precious metal into a 'clean asset'. These are the masterminds who need to be 'smoked out'.

As the standoff around an abandoned gold mine at Stilfontein in North West rumbles on with an unknown number of "zama zamas" still underground, the World Gold Council happened to release a global report on artisanal gold miners this week.

"Silence is Golden: A Report on the Exploitation of Artisanal Gold Miners to Fund War, Terrorism and Organised Crime" makes some sensible recommendations for addressing this scourge. It's a deep shaft to sink, but an alternative must be found to a blunt "surrender or starve" strategy aimed at smoking out the miners at the bottom of sprawling criminal syndicates.

The World Gold Council report is a salient reminder for South Africans that illegal gold mining is a vast global industry spun from a complex web of transnational organised crime.

"Artisanal and small-scale gold mining comprises about 20% of all annual gold supply, and 80% of employment in the sector," says the report.

It provides income for an estimated 15 million to 20 million people, often ruthlessly exploited, in 80 countries, and indirectly supports 270 million people.

But the big profits surge to the criminals at the top who...