The South African government refuses to help the approx 4,000 illegal miners who are inside a closed mine in the country’s northwest province as part of an official policy implemented in the country against illegal mining.

The thousands of miners at the mine in Stilfontein are believed to be suffering from a lack of food, water and other basic necessities after police closed the entrances used to transport their supplies. According to CNN, the closure of the entrance is part of the police’s Operation Vala Umgodi, or “Close the Hole,” which involves cutting off the miners’ supplies to force them back to the surface and arrest them.

In recent weeks, more than 1,000 miners have turned up at various mines in the northwestern province, with many weak, hungry and sick after going weeks without basic supplies.

About 20 miners surfaced from the mine at Stilfontein this week as police patrol areas around the mine to catch anyone who decides to surface.

Cabinet Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told reporters on Wednesday that the government will not send any help to the illegal miners because they are involved in criminal activity.

“We don’t send aid to criminals. They will come out. Criminals should not be helped. Criminals will be prosecuted. We didn’t send them there,” Ntshavheni said.

Illegal mining is common in South Africa’s old gold mining areas, with miners going into sealed shafts to dig for any remaining deposits.

The illegal miners are often from neighboring countries, and police say the illegal operations include larger syndicates that employ the miners.

Their presence in closed mines has also created problems for neighboring communities, which complain that illegal miners commit crimes ranging from robbery to rape.