China unhappy about media's galamsey coverage, urges gov't to check media

The Chinese Embassy in Ghana has expressed disquiet about the media's reportage about Chinese involvement in illegal small scale mining, commonly known as galamsey.

In a letter to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, the Chinese Embassy urged Ghana's government to check the media's coverage of Chinese citizens describing such reportage as 'defamatory'.

In the letter, the embassy suggested that bilateral relations between the two nations could suffer if this was not done.

"We sincerely hope that the Ghanaian government shall take responsibility of guiding the media and requesting them not to publicise such defamatory reports or stories against Chinese leaders officials and the Chinese government.

This will help create a sound environment for our joint efforts to address this issue and the continuous development of our bilateral relations," the letter said.

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The media has over the last four months embarked on a strong campaign to force the government to clamp down on illegal small scale mining which has led to the pollution of several of Ghana's water bodies.

Chinese businessmen have been some of the major contributors of cash and equipment to the mines.

Last week, a former minister accused the Chinese ambassador of attempting to bribe him in order to soften his stance on Chinese nationals involved in galamsey.

The letter also said the Chinese government was committed to helping Ghana fight the galamsey menace.

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"The Chinese government attaches great importance to the illegal mining issue. The position of the Chinese government on this issue is consistent and clear cut. The Chinese is firmly opposed to the involvement of the Chinese citizens in illegal mining Ghana and supports the efforts taken by the Ghanaian government to tackle the illegal mining issue within the legal framework."

Analysis

Unlike in China, Ghana's constitution guarantees the independence of the media and many of Ghana's notable media organisations are not state owned. Even the government has commended the media for its work on galamsey; as such the Chinese complaints would very likely result to naught.