Dutch Govt Investigates brutal diplomat

Chronicle sources in The Hague, Holland over the weekend confirmed that the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs has officially began investigations into the brutal assault of a security guard by a senior Dutch Diplomat at the Dutch Embassy in Accra.

According to a high ranking source within the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Dutch Ambassdor to Ghana who is currently in Amsterdam for a conference may be answering questions regarding the assault.

The case which is generating debate in Holland has also caught the attention of the Dutch press who have begun sniffing around hoping to blow up the case. Some journalists have already begun calling contacts in Ghana for more information on the case.

In Holland, such a brutal assault would not have been tolerated and sources say, if adverse findings are made against the diplomat, he risk being thrown out of the diplomatic service.

By last Friday, the Dutch Embassy has distanced itself from commenting on the matter. The Press Officer of the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Accra, Bob Hansen, told “Chronicle” when he was reached on phone that he could not make any comments on the matter because the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs had asked them not to comment on the matter.

“We have been advised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs not to comment on the issue” he said. Even though the Dutch Embassy has not named the diplomat involved, “Chronicle” sources in Holland gave his name as Peter Zwart.

Ghana and Holland just celebrated 300 years of diplomatic relations and some Dutch politicians who talked to “Chronicle” on anonymous grounds said they were worried that an incident like this could blur the relationship between the two countries.

“This incidence is very unfortunate, especially coming after the successful celebration of the 300 years of diplomatic relations with Ghana. I understand a Malaysian was deported from Ghana because of some these incidences. If Ghana government decides to deport our man in the same manner it would be very embarrassing,” he added.

It would be recalled that on 8 January 2003, “Chronicle” broke the story of how Dutch diplomat and his wife who launched a brutal assault on 25 year old Musah Issifu, a Safetech security guard stationed at their residence.

In his own account of the incident, Musah Issifu, a native of Bawku-Upper East Region who lives at Maamobi, a suburb of Accra told the “Chronicle” that on that fateful day he was sitting on a chair when one of the diplomat exotic dogs went and stood by him. He said that the dog begun to disturb and threaten him so he pushed the dog.

Coincidentally, the wife of the diplomat who was about to go out spotted the guard pushing the dog so she approached him furiously and said that if the guard does not take care she would caused his dismissal.

In his own words, Musah said the diplomat screamed at him saying “when your supervisors come, tell them to change you because I don’t want to come back and meet you here. Musah said when the diplomat’s wife came back and saw him in the house she pulled out her mobile phone and spoke to someone and dashed straight into the sitting room.

“About 20 minutes later, her husband also blew the horn so I quick rushed and opened the gate. On hearing the noise of her husband’s vehicle the woman came back from the room and said something to her husband which I did not hear,” he said.

Musah continued that after listening to the wife, the diplomat turned and yelled “hey black dog, come here!!! I did not mind because I thought he was referring to his dog. But he repeated and said “you security man come here”.

Musah said at this time the diplomat’s wife had begun shedding tears, so her husband asked him, “What happened to madam”? Before he could explain the diplomat slapped him and hooked his neck, Musah said he also held the neck of the diplomat and he and his wife grabbed the cutlass from the garden boy and began lashing him with it.

“In the ensuing struggle, the Dutchman lost one of his shirt buttons and I also lost my shirt button. The husband was shouting, “You will pay for my shirt and the wife continued to hit me with the cutlass-langa langa”.

At the time of the incident, the Embassy pleaded ignorance to the incident and refrained from any comments. The Foreign Affairs Ministry of Ghana has also not issued any statement on the issue. Observers say they are watching how the case will unfold but hoped that the investigation by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs would not be that of a whitewash.