In the early 17th century Potosí was the largest city in the Americas, extracting immense amounts of silver. Over the next two centuries silver was found elsewhere leaving many miners destitute. The demand for tin saved the town from absolute poverty until the price slumped because of over-supply. Now 20,000 miners work up to seven days a week manually extracting tin, zinc, lead and other metals. Most of the miners work as part of cooperatives and split the proceeds. Mining is a family tradition and children as young as 12 start as apprentices to their
fathers.
I've signed up for a mine tour and being slightly claustrophobic I'm nervous. As we drive up the winding road to one of the 5000 entrances, there are women and children smashing rocks with hammers. It's a tragic sight. At the top we buy 'presents' for the miners - coca leaves, dynamite, 96% alcohol and biscuits - to help them get through the long days.
Crouching in the narrow tunnels complete with hard hats and rubber boots, it's difficult to imagine miners living down here for up to six months at a time. It's dark, dusty and cramped. In medieval conditions, miners hack away at the walls with axes and dymamite and empty the galleries with wheel barrows. It's back-breaking dangerous work. On average there's one accident a day. This doesn't include silicosis and other lung diseases miners suffer and die from. The life expectancy of a miner is 50 years if he's lucky. We encounter one 65-year old man who has been working in the mines since he was 12.
In one of the galleries, some dynamite goes off and the walls start shaking. After 45 minutes underground I'm relieved to see daylight. I find it difficult to imagine people working underground for 14 hours at a time. The miners don't eat throughout the day. Instead they chew on coca leaves which numbs their mouths and takes awayall hunger and feeling. The choice is simple for them - earn money to survive or not.
(Photo - about to enter the mine, Potosí)
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