The conversation around illegal mining in Ghana has taken a sharp turn as Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare, renowned legal scholar and Democracy and Development Fellow at the CDD-Ghana, has reignited the debate on how the country treats foreign nationals involved in galamsey.
His position is firm, unapologetic, and resonant: Ghana must prosecute and jail foreign illegal miners before even considering deportation.
In a strongly worded statement, Prof. Asare questioned the sudden resurgence of interest in the controversial Sinohydro-Aisha Huang affair, asking pointedly, “Why are yaanom suddenly reminding us about the Sinohydro-Aisha link?”
For him, this is not merely a matter of national embarrassment—it is a test of Ghana’s legal backbone and environmental resolve.
Deportation, in his view, is a soft option—an abdication of responsibility dressed up as diplomacy.
“It undermines the seriousness of the offense and denies the state the opportunity to demonstrate that illegal mining is a crime with real consequences—regardless of nationality.”
Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare
According to him, when foreign perpetrators of illegal mining are simply sent home, it doesn’t just undercut the legal process—it mocks it.
Professor Asare warned that deporting offenders without due sentencing allows them to escape justice, often returning under false identities or exploiting legal grey areas in other vulnerable countries.
Ghana, he argued, must not be seen as a sanctuary for environmental plunderers.
Instead, he called for swift prosecution under Ghanaian law, a move he believes will affirm the country’s sovereignty and seriousness in combating the menace. “Serving a sentence deters others, reinforces the rule of law, and ensures justice is seen to be done.”
Deportation Must Follow Sentencing
Furthermore, Prof. Stephen Asare acknowledged that deportation has a role to play—but only after justice has taken its full course.
According to him, sentencing followed by deportation is the only way Ghana can restore its waning credibility and send an unmistakable message to those eyeing its gold-laden soil: “the law will catch up with you“.
“Too many bad precedents have been set, and it’s time we systematically depart from them. Letting foreign galamseyers off with mere deportation weakens our justice system and emboldens others to follow suit.”
Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare
For Prof. Asare, justice is not just about punishment—it’s about reinforcing norms. A slap on the wrist, especially when the offender is a foreigner exploiting Ghana’s land and rivers, is worse than doing nothing.
It advertises the country as a toothless state, willing to trade its environmental future for diplomatic convenience.
He further emphasized that the nation has a responsibility not just to prosecute but to set an example.
“Sentencing first, then deporting, is how we restore credibility, assert our sovereignty, and send a clear message: Ghana will no longer be a playground for environmental exploitation.”
Professor Stephen Kwaku Asare
It’s a clarion call to recalibrate how Ghana handles illegal mining, especially when foreign actors are involved. At stake is not just gold or land—it’s national dignity and ecological survival.
Accountability Needed Beyond Galamsey
Interestingly, Prof. Asare did not stop at the galamsey issue. He broadened his call for accountability to include Ghana’s current power crisis, making a sharp pivot to the ongoing electricity debacle.
He called for expedited prosecution of those responsible for the energy sector’s failures, saying, “Hasten the prosecution of the ECG czars whose shenanigans have plunged the nation into darkness.”
The implication here is clear: Ghana’s challenges—be it environmental degradation through illegal mining or the embarrassing mismanagement of power distribution—are symptoms of a deeper institutional rot.
For a country striving to be taken seriously in international development circles, these lapses are not just domestic headaches; they are public relations disasters.
Accountability, in his view, must be visible. “Accountability must be swift and certain to deter impunity and restore public trust in our institutions.”
What Ghana needs, he suggested, is not more diplomatic evasions or endless committee hearings—it needs decisive action and legal fortitude.
If foreign nationals can come into the country, destroy its rivers, and walk away with a plane ticket instead of a prison sentence, then the rule of law is in shambles.
As Ghana continues to battle with illegal mining and its cascading consequences—from polluted water bodies to compromised security and weakened institutional trust—Prof. Asare’s message stands out as a reminder that without real consequences, there can be no real change.
The time for soft diplomacy and legal leniency has passed. Ghana must protect itself—not just from foreign plunderers but from its own unwillingness to act decisively.
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