Three individuals have been arrested in connection with a recent attack on journalists who were covering illegal mining activities at Asumenya in the Ashanti Region.
Some JoyNews reporters while on duty covering what has become a national concern, were subjected to assults by a group of armed men. The journalists were ordered to submit their equipment and forced to enter their car together with the armed men. According to the leader of the armed group, they were driving toward the owner of the site, who they claimed lives in a nearby town.
Notable amongst the three reporters assulted was award-winning journalist, Erastus Asare Donkor. He has been vocal about activities of illegal mining and its dangers within the region. According to the reporters, they were severly beaten upon demanding to know exactly where they were being driven to. They had realised they were heading towards an obscure direction.
The armed men, who were ten in number reportedly claimed they work for a certain company called Edelmetallum Resources Limited in the Ashanti Region.
Out of the three arrested suspects, two have reportedly identified as part of the armed group who assulted the journalists.
Illegal mining activities, locally known as ‘galamsey’ in Ghana has become a national concern. Many lands are left degraded and water bodies have been polluted as a result. Various unions recently embarked on a protest to register their displeasure on what seems like lack of efforts from government to tackle the menace.
The activity is said to be contributing hugely towards the recent decline of cocoa production rates, as farmers resort to selling their lands to the perpetrators.
Pressure from the protests saw some culprits arrested by the police. But citizens remain dissatisfied with the approach, as it is the galamsey kingpins they want prosecuted and not just ordinary employees.
According to some experts, it will take hundreds of years for some of the damages to be repaired.
Source: Dehotpress
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