Again, another Ghanaian dies in Italy - the fifth in one city within 20 months – and in similar cases involving deaths of some African immigrants in Italy people are asking questons and giving their own interpretations.
The latest tragedy, the death of 9-year-old Emmanuel Gray Afrane, has shocked the locality of Pontetaro where he lives in the Italian northern city Parma. The young lad was a lovable boy, known by almost everybody in his community, including the police in the area. He is often seen ridding his bicycle around and across the streets, loves football and a player of the local juvenile football team.
Emmanuel was together with his 13-year-old sister in the company of other school children at a playground where they have been taken during school holidays. He played in a football game, got involved in other games and decided to have fun in the swimming pool. It will be difficult to believe what went wrong next but within moments the unconcious body of little Emmanuel was seen floating on the surface of the water. He was with other children in the pool which water level was not deep enough to swallow children of his age over their head and how he got suffocated, not seen by anyone for the length of time in the water (the bottom which can be seen from the surface) has baffled many and been the subject of debate since.
When awareness was drawn to the sight, with his sister a short distance from the pool talking to her mates, an ambulance (helipcoter) was quickly called in and was rushed to hospital. Young Emmanuel, who by this time has fallen into coma, was immidiately put under intensive care and kept alive by machines. Three days later he was pronounced dead. Doctors said he spent 20 minutes under the water unconcious and that might have suffocated him causing fatal injuries to his brain and was clinically dead on the third day.
His death has saddened the community of Ghanaians in the city with many of them asking questions and arguing on the case which they claim is not the first it has happened on children of African immigrants in Italy.
Whilst some believe negligence on the part of the pool authourities should be questioned and that they should be held responsible for the tragedy, others think doctors did something sinister to have a body part of the young boy claiming they are basing their argument on similar incidents. Yet still, there are those who have taken the story with a supernatural view believing spiritual forces in Italy might be responsible for some of these deaths involving African immigrants in Italy.
Which of these, if any, has not been proved as people piece together any information on the death of the young boy to draw their own conclusion.
- Reggie Tagoe in Parma, Italy.
