In Gwanda, Resurgence Of Violent Gangs Causes Turmoil

People in Spitzkop, Gwanda, no longer feel safe because of violent gold panners.

BY AMANDA NCUBE | @The_CBNews | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | MAR 5, 2021

A community in Gwanda lives in fear of violence perpetrated by gold panners. In many cases, residents have been at the receiving end.

GWANDA (The Citizen Bulletin) — Patrick Dube from Spitzkop North Suburb in Gwanda was sleeping in his house with his family when he heard pounding sounds of stones landing on his rooftop at around 1 a.m.

After ensuring his family’s security, Dube made a telephone call to his neighbour, who was already awake from the noise.

They feared the worst, the return of gangs who have been continuously terrorising the community.

“They threw several stones on my rooftop, damaging some asbestos in the process, and they also smashed the kitchen window with a brick.”
Patrick Dube, a Gwanda resident

“I didn’t dare to go out of the house out of fear of my life. I just stayed put until the noise subsided after a few minutes, and I knew that they had passed,” he says.

Residents from Spitzkop North Suburb in Ward 5 have become victims of several crimes: vandalism, assault, theft, attempted murder, and murder caused by gold panners—most of them unregistered.

The gold panners are known to move around in different gangs passing through the neighbourhood in the middle of the night and vandalising property, and sometimes attacking people.

People in Spitzkop no longer feel safe.

“Sometimes the gold panners will be fighting one another, and their fights spill into the neighbourhood, and in the process, they vandalise our property. At times they kill one another during these fights. Sometimes they will be drunk, and they move around vandalising property or assaulting people and stealing from people they meet in the streets,” he says.

Before the lockdown, the panners spent most of their time at Njanji and Redcross business centres in Spitzkop north suburb.

The closure of bars has brought them closer to the community, and now they converge at shebeens.

Some of these crimes occur in broad daylight. On several occasions, the residents pleaded with the police to open a base within their area to ensure their safety.

Gold panners resort to street justice after one of their own was stabbed following a dispute over a 'prostitute' in 2018. Image by Nehanda Radio

Innocent Mguni, a victim of robbery and assault, says he was recently attacked by gold panners at around 7 p.m. while on his way home.

He says the gang of about eight men cornered him and demanded his valuables.

“I told them that I didn’t have anything, and they went on to assault me with sjamboks. I screamed for help, but people were afraid to come out of their homes and confront the gang because they are dangerous.”
Innocent Mguni, a victim of robbery and assault

“They took my wallet and phone, and they left me lying on the ground. We live in fear because we never know when they will strike again,” he says.

Ward 5 councillor Gilbert Dube says the violence has of late reduced because of the lockdown, but some cases continue to be recorded.

“With bottle stores and bars closed, the number of gangs that move around has dropped, but there are a few who still move around at night terrorising residents. They will be coming from shebeens in the area that operates illegally. Some of these gold panners rent houses within the ward while some put up in houses that are still under construction in the area,” he says.

The gold panners reportedly operate from small mines which are at the periphery of the residential areas. In addition to attacking residents, the gold panners fight over claims and their fights spill into the community.

Dube has called for establishing two police bases, one at Njanji Business Centre and another at Redcross Business Centre, areas frequented by the panners.

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Matabeleland South provincial police spokesperson Inspector Loveness Mangena says Spitzkop North Suburb is indeed a hotspot for violent crimes and plans are underway to open a police base in the area.

“We continue to conduct patrols in the area, especially at night, and we have made several arrests in connection to these violent crimes. During the prevailing lockdown, we conduct patrols to ensure that no one moves around beyond the curfew. We also urge members of the public to report these cases so that culprits are apprehended quickly,” she says.

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