Illegal Copper Cartels, Lawlessness And Politics Of Appeasement And Vindictiveness

As a fellow born and bred on the Copperbelt in the mining town of Luanshya, I am grossly perturbed and disturbed by the astronomical levels of illegal mining in the country. Copper cartels established by high profile criminals who are veritable Mafias with the wicked schemes akin to the Sicilian criminal barons are now taking hostage of many Copperbelt towns.

In the evening we see truckloads of rowdy, insolent and brutal youths loaded on trucks in hundreds of numbers packed like sardines in tins heading for the mines. In the colonial days just as the Kaunda days, there was no illegal mining which is now rampant and almost uncontrollable in the whole Zambia. The founding fathers of Zambia among them Kenneth Kaunda, Simon Kapwepwe, Justin Chimba, Munukayumbwa Sipalo, Nalumino Mundia, Arthur Wina, Sikota Wina, John Mwanakatwe, Hyden Dingiswayo Banda, Elijah Mudenda, Mainza Chona, Peter Matoka, Lewis Changufu, Grey Zulu and Reuben Chitandika Kamanga were visionaries who knew the value of the mining industry and did their very best to preserve and conserve our minerals for their children, and their children’s children. They had foresight and treasured a brighter future for all Zambians by putting the interests of the nation first. They were genuine patriots who manifested true spirit of loyalty to the people of Zambia and envisioned a brighter future for the citizens born and yet to be born. It was impossible for us to trespass a prohibited mining area. Rules and regulations governing security in the mines were very strict and any person who broke them at will was given severe punishment forthwith.

Children of miners were restricted and could not enter mining premises as trespassing through such areas was punishable through either dismissal of the rebellious children’s parents or suspension from work. The dismissed had to be forced to go to their villages. The mine security men (and later women got employed) were ruthlessly strict. No criminally-inclined miners would bribe them or befriend them to connive with them in criminal plots bordering on theft of copper or company property. The Bakanyangu as they were called then were sullen, unfriendly and unsmiling as a culture ingrained in them not to compromise their principles at the mines. There was watertight discipline and sanity was guaranteed in all mining divisions on the Copperbelt. The Kanyangu security clan comprised of men and women who were fearless and put personal interests crushed under their safety shoes and security boots.

All townships were regularly patrolled by the mine police officers. Their work orientation was strict and tight. Copper was the mainstay of our economy and we were proud to be sons and daughters of miners who were very tough martinets or disciplinarians. Shimaini ali wakutina elyo ali uwacindama. The nationalisation of the mines by the KK regime which entrusted all the mines in the care of the government which later merged two mining giant companies, the Roan Consolidated Mines (RCM) and Nchanga Consolidated Copper Mines (NCCM) into Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines (ZCCM) in 1982 was not received kindly by the Western countries which had vested interest in recolonising Zambia through possession of the mines.

The Kaunda regime which had a policy where mines underperforming were cushioned by the profitable mines started facing silent sanctions and later the World Bank and its sister organisation the International Monetary Fund (IMF) meted out harsh conditionalities against the country which called for devaluation of the Kwacha, auctioning of foreign exchange , withdrawal of subsidies in education, health, mealie meal and fuel. Harsh conditionalities wrecked the Kaunda regime and the Wind of Change in the Soviet Union fanned by the liberal communist leader Mikhail Gorbachev swept Eastern Europe of tyrannical regimes. Africa was not spared. Dr Julius Nyerere of Tanzania was the only president who stands out as a great leader who never entered a deal with the IMF read the negative Western plots to oust socialist regimes by inciting people to rebel against legally-cionstituted regimes. Nyerere retired as President voluntarily and was succeeded by Ali Hassan Mwinyi his Vice President. KK was voted out of office by the people and was succeeded by Frederick Chiluba. Chiluba, one time a voracious Socialist leader from the trade union entered into a deal with the IMF and had to sanction the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) which expedited privatisation of state owned companies, devaluation of the Kwacha and withdrawal of subsidies from key sectors of the economy. There was expeditious privatisation of the mines which ultimately became detrimental to the mines. Luanshya Mines bore the worst brunt of privatisation. The mines were sold to the Binani Group of Companies run by Indians based in Britain. The Binani folks had no background of mining. The worst of privatisation hit Luanshya as Binani which was also given Serioes a large cloth manufacturing industry with outstanding repute of exports. The great mining town was reduced to a rag tag just as many mines privatised across Zambia became liabilities as the new owners downsized on the workforce and added numerous numbers to the jobless miners across the country.

Abject poverty compelled hundreds of starving miners and their children to vandalise the mines which were insecure and at the mercy of Zambia Police Service whose officers lacked the strictness of Bakanyangu and engaged in illegal mining to make long ends meet. The fences were stripped off and deadly criminal cartels in mining came into the fold to plunder the copper at the speed of Satwant Singh. Nearly all the mines were invaded by township gangsters comprising even the ten year old boys who must have been too young to do the backbreaking work of the liquidated miners who were plunged into prayerlessness. The cartels of illegal mines became commonplace during the PF era as so many copper cartels leaders supported by Chishimba Kambwili went on rampage. There was plunder and squander as policy among the copper cartels who never had even a modicum of patriotism. Their pockets mattered more than loyalty to Mother Zambia.

I am perpetually tormented mentally by swarms and swarms of ruthless youngsters in gangsterism toting shovels, picks, clawbars, sharp hoes and axes as they are carried on Sinotruk trucks like stacks of wood destined for funerals though they head for the mines. One would be convinced beyond doubt that the levels of lawlessness as vestiges or residues of the ECL regime are going higher and higher daily. These uncultured and unrepentant fellows are getting to astoundingly levels were taming them for the voluntary national service training would become impossible. Their sight at night brings closer to my view the near unavoidable possibility that Zambia is maturing to become another Haiti or Somalia if the government of the day delays in reshaping and redesigning the destiny of our country as potential Singapore. Zambia beats Singapore in the possession of rich natural resources endowed upon it. The state of security now calls for the massive recruitment of trainee police officers not less than 30,000. This recruitment should not have bias to favour partisan interests but has to be based on patriotism as the moral precept to the recruits must be putting the country first.

My heart bleeds to see foreigners creaming off the country with all the minerals and money which must be in possession of Zambians. There is no dignity in being controlled economically by foreign business houses. KK and Shimpundu Kapwepwe introduced the Mulungushi and Matero Reforms as fore steps towards complete independence. Complete independence comes with economic independence. The colonisers coming in different attires other than guns and the Bible are long gone. Today we have colonisers coming with huge sums of money whose source we cannot question and we give them our arable land because we feel much of the land is unoccupied.

This would make us regret in the near future when we will be stripped off of all our wealth and get paraded like little children begging alms from benefactors from the West and the East. There is battle for the soul of Africa between the capitalist West and the Communist East. The grass (Africans) will one day bear the consequences of plunder of our own resources by the investors we esteem and subordinate our own people to lower levels of sub-humans in their own country. The work culture of the people of Zambia must change. It must foster hard work and self-discipline. Government must give the locals first priority consideration when it comes to acquisition of land and loans for small and medium scale entrepreneurship. It should prick our hearts to wallow in poverty as foreigners capitalise on our sheepish and malleable subservience to the whims and caprices of the holders of foreign direct investment resources. The borrower is the servant of the lender. The “haves” will always prevail on the “have nots”.

As we struggle to honour our heritage bequeathed to us by founding fathers, we must take it as a moral precept and fundamental obligation that possessing the land in its fullness is what will guarantee a brighter future for the country and the rest of Africa. Africa will will not be developed by foreigners who come with ulterior agendas that gratify their ego and uphold foreign interests to take supremacy over ours. The Spirit of Pan Africanism espoused by the like of George Padmore, Marcus Aurelius Garvey, Frantz Fannon, Ras Taffari (Haile Selassie, Kwame Nkrumah, Sekou Tourre, Gilchrist Olympio, Modibo Keita, Abbubakar Tafawa Balewa, Julius Nyerere, Kenneth Kaunda, Milton Obote, Nelson Mandela, Oliver Tambo, Simon Kapwepwe, Abdel Gamal Nasser, William Silvester B. Dubois, Eric William, Joseph B. Danquah, Abeid Karume, Ahmed Salim, Koffi Attah Annan, and Albert Xuma among many giants in Africa and in the diaspora must be our guidepost.

Africa is stronger when she stands with her people together to weather storms and storms of economic persecution and ultimate economic deprivation of Africa where she surrenders all her wealth to Uncle Sam and his surrogates. I long for the day when Africa will tower over Europe, Asia, America and the rest of the Caribbean as the supreme economic giant anchored by the Almighty God and sustained by deep love and trust among her people shedding off complacency and conceit and her hard working and loving people.All raging civil wars must be brought to nought as Africa would stand tall, high above pettiness and narrow self-interests of her leaders from North to South and West to East. My dear friend, colleague and comrade, we hold the key to all solutions of Africa’s problems. We may not live to see the attainment of the United States of Africa but we must play specific roles to see the emergence or renaissance of Africa with a large Free Trade Area by 2063.

By Shadon Chanda
The Author is Luanshya based historian and academician