The Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) has received a chilling report of the brutal assault of award-winning journalist Erastus Asare Donkor and his crew by armed thugs last Sunday in the line of duty and in pursuit of a cause for the good and survival of the nation.
While covering the wanton destruction of the environment (including farmlands and water bodies) as a result of mining activities at Asumenya in the Amansie South District in the Ashanti Region, armed thugs protecting a mining site at the village belonging to Edelmetallum Mining Resources Limited, seized the Multimedia Group Limited crew and their equipment, subjecting them to brute assault.
The armed thugs wielding pump action guns took the Multimedia crew to a secluded forest at a village nearby where they assaulted and abandoned them in severe bodily harm, including swollen eyes and ringing effect in the ear.
The Multimedia crew subsequently reported the incident at the Manso Edubia Police Station where they were given medical forms with which they sought medical treatment at the Agroyesum Hospital.
According to the crew, their assailants had indicated that they were acting on the instructions of the owner of the mining company.
Investigations by the GJA indicate that the mining lease has Adelaide Tettey as shareholder.
The GJA is informed the Police have arrested three suspects in the case, and we applaud them for acting swiftly in that regard.
We particularly commend the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) for showing interest in the case, and urge the Police to arrest the others and prosecute them immediately.
We understand that following the report made by the victims at the Manso Edubia Police Station, eight armed police officers were dispatched to the crime scene where they encountered the armed thugs in fierce verbal exchanges.
The police subsequently retreated with the intention to go for reinforcement and return to action to effect arrest.
The GJA encourages the police to demonstrate, in all circumstances, that they are in control of internal security, including the protection of the environment.
Meanwhile, the GJA calls on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Minerals Commission (MC) to suspend the permit and license of Edelmetallum Mining Resources Limited to allow for investigations into the operations of the mining company, particularly the adverse impact of the mining operations on the environment.
We also call on civil society organisations to roundly condemn the assault of the Multimedia crew to demonstrate the collective national resolve to seek healing for our ailing environment caused by mining activities.
While expressing sympathy to our comrades and wishing them speedy recovery, the GJA wishes to assure them and the entire media fraternity that the Association will not rest until we find justice for the Multimedia crew.
Erastus Asare Donkor is the P.A.V. Ansah Journalist of the Year 2022, and through his sterling journalistic works, he has been a formidable defense against environmental degradation emanating from mining operations.
We believe beyond the GJA honour bestowed on him for his journalistic excellence, Erastus deserves the highest honour of the land, and his assailants deserve the worst punishment in the land.
