MyJHB

Stuff from Johannesburg

Government to close open shafts, mine holes

Advertorial:
Government to close open shafts, mine holes:

Thursday, August 10, 2023

The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has committed to closing all derelict open shafts and mine holes in Riverlea by the finish of September 2023, while finalising plans to execute the same across the country.

This is due to the illicit activities that gain left some communities living in alarm.

“Cabinet welcomed the deployment of a special police unit, which is supported by the military, in Riverlea, Johannesburg, to deal with illegal mining in the area.

“In addition, Cabinet commended the arrest of over 194 suspects over illegal mining activities and directed law-enforcement agencies to urgently clamp down on this and other serious crimes in the country,” Minister in The Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, said on Thursday.

She was addressing a media briefing in Pretoria on the outcomes of the Cabinet meeting held on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Cabinet has approved the pre-release calendar for the publication of the quarterly crime statistics for the 2023/24 financial year.

“The crime statistics will be released in August and November 2023 for quarters one and two, and February and May 2024 for quarter three and quarter four, respectively. The frequent release of crime statistics is indispensable for monitoring crime trends and better decision-making in the fight against crime,” Ntshavheni said.

Cabinet also approved the submission of the draft National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Amendment Bill of 2023 to Parliament.

“The Bill amends the NPA Act, 1998 (Act 32 of 1998) to provide for the establishment of the Investigating Directorate as a permanent entity within the NPA, and to also strengthen its investigative powers,” the Minister said. – SAnews.gov.za

Read More at the Source

– MyZA

CLICK HERE to submit your news to www.MyPR.co.za.

Click here to submit your South African News – free.

Prepaid Meters: Straton Prepaid

Category: Tag: , , , , ,

From Sophiatown to Triomf

By 1963, Sophiatown had been physically razed to the ground. In a final act of psychological warfare, the government built a white working-class suburb over the rubble and named it Triumph (Triomf). They wanted to erase the very memory of Sophiatown from the landscape. For decades, the name Sophiatown disappeared from maps, replaced by the neat, sterile streets of the victors.

The “resurrection” of Sophiatown began officially in 2006, when the City of Johannesburg formally restored the original name to the suburb. Today, the neighborhood is a quiet, leafy residential area, but the ghosts of the “Paris of the Transvaal” are everywhere. The Sophiatown Heritage Centre, housed in the former home of Dr. A.B. Xuma (a former ANC president), is one of the few original buildings that escaped the bulldozers. Walking through the streets today, you can still find small markers of the past: a lone Victorian pillar, a specific tree mentioned in a poem, or the rebuilt St. Joseph’s Church.

The legacy of Sophiatown is not just one of tragedy, but of an indestructible cultural spirit. The music, the slang (Tsotsitaal), and the “Drum” era aesthetic continue to influence South African fashion and film today. It serves as a reminder that while you can bulldoze a house and rename a street, you cannot kill the soul of a place that once danced to the sound of a thousand saxophones.