The President of the Ghana Journalists Association, Albert Kwabena Dwumfour, has reiterated the urgent need for a state of emergency to be declared over the country’s water bodies.
He is also calling for the repealing of all planned and active mining concessions that overlap with river buffers and insisted that all mining activities within 100 meters of rivers and streams should be halted.
Speaking at the 28th GJA Media Awards in Accra, Mr. Dwumfour expressed worry over the detention of protesters by the Police for two weeks, stating that it is too extreme and does not reflect positively on the protection of human rights.
The GJA President urged the media to prefix their stories with #STOPGALAMSEYNOW, affirming that they will continue to advocate against illegal mining until it ceases. He therefore called on the government, police, and judiciary to take action to release the protesters.
“Illegal mining, commonly referred to as Galamsey, is currently a topical issue in Ghana due to its devastating effects on the environment, particularly our water bodies, which serve as major sources of drinking water.
“Galamsey has wreaked havoc on our environment and all our water bodies. As a Ghanaian, it saddens me to see once-clean bodies of water turn a dark brown color. This is shameful, and we must all, as Ghanaians, wage a war against galamsey.
“There should be strict enforcement of all mining laws and regulations without any concessions, as well as the imposition of maximum sentences on offenders. This is a reliable approach to addressing this issue.
“Naa chairman, we still maintain that a state of emergency must be declared over our water bodies and all planned and active mining concessions overlapping with river buffers should be abrogated and all mining activities within 50 meters buffer of all rivers and streams should be halted with immediate effect.
“I urge the media to prefix all of their stories with # STOP GALAMSEY NOW! We are also not stopping until Galamsey stops.Galamsey Protestesters Naa Chairman”.
He further ceased the opportunity to call for the release of the Democracy Hub protestors. According to him the Ghana Police Service showcased high level of professionalism and needs to be commended for, but pleaded that the protestors be released.
” I want to commend the Ghana Police Service for exhibiting a high level of professionalism and restraint during the recent three-day protest against Galamsey by some individuals.
” We note some excesses and provocations that occurred during the demonstration, and the GJA condemns these excesses. However, we also believe that remanding the protesters for two weeks is too extreme and does not send positive signals when it comes to protecting human rights.
“As a result, we add our voice to calls on the government, police, and the judiciary to take steps to release the protestors immediately”. President Dwumfour noted.
By: Isaac Asare & Mabel Awagah