The miners in the mineshaft in Stilfontein in the country's North West province are believed to be suffering from a lack of food, water and other basic necessities after police closed off the entrances used to transport their supplies underground.
It is part of the police's Vala Umgodi, or Close the Hole, operation, which includes cutting off miners' supplies to force them to return to the surface and be arrested.
In the past few weeks, more than 1000 miners have surfaced at various mines in North West province, with many reported to be weak, hungry and sickly after going for weeks without basic supplies.
About 20 miners have surfaced from the mineshaft in Stilfontein this week as police guard areas around the mine to catch all those appearing from underground.
Cabinet minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told reporters on Wednesday the government would not send any help to the illegal miners because they were involved in a criminal act.
"We are not sending help to criminals. We are going to smoke them out. They will come out. Criminals are not to be helped; criminals are to be prosecuted. We didn't send them there," Ntshavheni said.
Illegal mining remains common in South Africa's old goldmining areas, with miners going into closed shafts to dig for any possible remaining deposits.
The illegal miners are often from neighbouring countries, and police say the illegal operations involve larger syndicates that employ the miners.
Their presence in closed mines have also created problems with nearby communities, which complain that the illegal miners commit crimes ranging from robberies to rape.
Illegal mining groups are known to be heavily armed and disputes between rival groups sometimes result in fatal confrontations.
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