CSO groups in Ahafo condemn bloody clash between residents and police, calls on IGP to investigate

The Ahafo Civil Society Groups has condemned a bloody clash between police and some residents of Kenyasi, a mining town within the Newmont Ahafo South project in the Asutifi North District of the Ahafo Region, which left one dead, last Monday, November 14, 2022.

The groups, which comprise civil society organisations operating within the NGGL Ahafo North and Ahafo South projects enclaves, described the clash as “barbaric, uncivilized, and unconstitutional”.

Three other civilians reportedly sustained gunshot wounds in the clash said to have erupted when the police chased four residents, suspected to be thieves from the mine’s boom gate, and allegedly opened fire killing one of them instantly.

But, addressing a news conference in Sunyani, the group insisted the “police could have arrested them because the four suspected thieves were unarmed and defenceless to harm the police”.

The National Coalition of Mining (NCOM), another civil society organisation, supported the Groups to hold the conference to register their displeasure about what they described as rising abuses of human rights and dignity within the mine’s enclave.

Mr. Richard Adjei-Poku, a leading member of the groups, and the Chief Executive Officer of the Livelihood and Environment Ghana (LEG) an organisation that promotes community rights and environmental justice, therefore called on the Inspector General of Police to investigate the shooting incident.

“Since 2014, approximately 16 people have died (13 adults and three children) linked to the Newmont Ahafo South Mine project alone and several others have suffered various degrees of injuries,” he stated.

Flanked by other members of the groups, Mr. Adjei-Poku further called on the government to ensure that all military personnel engaged to guard mining companies were withdrawn, saying “we believe the protection of institutions within our borders is the mandate of the police”.

“We are also calling on the regulatory agencies such as the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Minerals Commission to intervene and ensure that the right thing was done within the Newmont Ahafo mine to protect the fundamental human rights and dignity of the local people,” he stated.