South Africa’s illegal gold miners are locked in an underground 

Illegal miners, believed to be in the hundreds, have been trapped underground in a disused mine shaft in the South African town of Stilfontein, as reported here earlier by Precious World 

The zama-zamas at Stilfontein have been locked in a standoff with police, who surrounded the entrance to the mine shaft and blocked off their food supplies in an attempt to “smoke them out.”

Rights groups outraged at the police’s tactics went to court over the weekend, which ruled the police must allow food and supplies down the hole to keep the miners alive. The miners, some of whom are living with HIV/AIDS, have also asked for their antiretroviral drugs to be sent down