Online Reporter
Fidelis Munyoro
Chief Court Reporter
A MINE safety order carries legal authority and must be obeyed.
Violating such an order is a serious offence that can lead to criminal penalties, including imprisonment for up to two years.
Compliance is essential to ensure safety and legal accountability in mining operations.
This hard truth has taken centre stage following the tragic death of artisanal miner Tinashe Chauke at Phoenix Prince Mine on April 23, 2026, amid allegations that Botha Gold Mine defied a Provincial Mining Engineer’s (PME) Suspension Order issued weeks earlier, on April 8.
The case raises questions of accountability, as the Suspension Order, issued under Section 267(1)(b) of the Mining (Management and Safety) Regulations, SI 109 of 1990, mandated the withdrawal of all workers and the cessation of operations until safety was fully restored. “The effect is immediate,” the regulations state.
“When an Inspector declares a mine or its workings dangerous, the operator must stop work without delay; failure to do so makes any subsequent activities illegal.”
Safety laws in Zimbabwe’s mining sector are unequivocal and exist to protect the fundamental right to life enshrined in Section 48 of the Constitution.
Legal experts argue that Section 267 is a life-saving provision, empowering State technical experts to pre-empt disasters by halting unsafe operations.
Refusal to comply, they emphasise, is not just negligence, it is a statutory crime under Section 301 of the same regulations.
“Any person in charge of a mine who defies a PME’s order or permits operations to continue is guilty of an offence,” reads Section 301. “The penalty? A fine up to $2 000, two years of imprisonment, or both.”
This legal net casts wide. Mine owners, operators, managers and even workers who carry on with mining under suspension orders are criminally liable. In the eyes of the law, a mine operating under a ban is a crime scene, its workers complicit by action or inaction.
The gravity of this was underscored when Mr Tendai Kashiri, Provincial Mining Director (PMD), swore an affidavit on April 22, 2026, verifying that Botha Gold Mine had no legal clearance to operate in ML21, the site of Chauke’s fatal accident.
If operations continued there beyond April 8, then a breach of both Section 267 and 301 occurred every single day.
“Each day of mining during a suspension is a separate criminal act,” one senior legal expert stated. “A fatality in that context is legally and morally indefensible. The law speaks clearly — it is culpable homicide.”
The Zimbabwe Republic Police, constitutionally obligated under Section 219 to enforce the law and prevent crime, must treat this matter with utmost urgency.
“A mine defying a shutdown order isn’t just dangerous — it’s committing ongoing crimes. It should be sealed immediately, and arrests should follow,” a legal commentator said.
Yet, court records reveal a glaring anomaly: despite the stark illegality of the operation and Chauke’s death, no public arrests have been announced. The silence raises uncomfortable questions about enforcement.
When a PME orders operations to stop, the law does not allow discretion. There is no room for negotiation, delay, or prioritisation of profits. Closure orders are binding until actual danger is certified as removed and only in writing.
If Botha Gold Mine flouted its legal duty to halt operations, it did not just defy a piece of paper. It defied a State’s preventative measure designed to save lives.
The consequences of such defiance are inescapable under the law. “When safety orders are ignored, and someone dies, the only legal outcome is criminal prosecution,” a mine safety advocate remarked. “The law is dangerously clear on this point: no exemptions, no grace periods.”
For Tinashe Chauke, it was a death foretold. For the operating managers of Botha Gold Mine, if proven guilty, prison awaits.
