Southern Africa: Glimmer of justice for sick gold miners

Years of working in poorly ventilated mines, inhaling silica dust - present in high concentrations in deep-level gold mines - can lead to silicosis, a crippling and progressive disease caused by scarring of the lungs. A study of former gold mine workers by the Aurum Institute, a non-profit health research organisation, found that nearly 25 per cent had silicosis. The disease has no cure and sufferers are also more prone to tuberculosis (TB). Now, two court cases have thrown a spotlight on the predicament of hundreds of thousands of former mineworkers in southern Africa who have received little or no compensation for occupational lung diseases.