'Let galamseyers face death penalty' - Emmanuel Kotin

Emmanuel Kotin, Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Security and Counterterrorism, has called on Ghana to introduce the death penalty for illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, as part of efforts to tackle the menace.

Speaking on Obunu TV, Kotin argued that Ghana could borrow lessons from China, which he claimed had successfully stopped illegal mining through the introduction of capital punishment.

"The galamsey you are talking about started in China. China introduced the death penalty and it has stopped in China. Let's introduce the death penalty too," he said.

Kotin's comments come amid persistent concerns over the destruction of forest reserves, pollution of water bodies and the impact of illegal mining on communities across Ghana.

However, historical and legal records do not support Kotin's assertion that galamsey originated in China or that China introduced the death penalty specifically to eliminate illegal mining.

Galamsey has a long history in Ghana. Small-scale mining was widely practised before 1989, when the government introduced the Small-Scale Gold Mining Law (PNDCL 218) to formalise and regulate the sector.

China's involvement in Ghana's illegal mining crisis became particularly prominent from the mid-2000s. Research by UNU-WIDER estimates that approximately 50,000 Chinese migrants entered Ghana's small-scale gold mining sector between the mid-2000s and 2013. Their arrival brought more sophisticated mining equipment, which significantly increased gold production and intensified environmental damage.

There is also an important distinction regarding China's death penalty laws.

Article 343 of China's Criminal Law prescribes prison terms of up to seven years for serious illegal mining offences and up to five years for destructive mining that causes serious damage to mineral resources. The provision does not prescribe the death penalty for illegal mining.

In Ghana, the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act, 2019 (Act 995) introduced considerably stiffer punishments. Section 99 provides for 15 to 25 years' imprisonment for certain illegal mining offences committed by Ghanaians, with even stiffer provisions for foreign nationals.

EA