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Thursday saw hundreds of Ghanaians, mostly university students, marching through the streets of Accra in protest, urging authorities to take swift action in halting illegal mining operations.
The protesters, who have planned a series of rallies over three days, are also calling for the release of 54 activists who were detained last month for holding demonstrations against illegal mining.
In the lead-up to the presidential elections this December, the government’s failure to adequately address illegal mining — and its effects on natural resources and rural livelihoods — has become a central point of contention in Ghana.
“If our leaders don’t take action now, future generations will pay the price,” Delali Asante, a student at the University of Ghana, told AFP.
Singing the Ghanaian national anthem and other patriotic songs, the protesters, dressed in symbolic red and black, danced with energy and purpose through the streets of the capital city.
Highlighting the alarming environmental damage caused by illegal mining, numerous protesters showcased bottles of polluted water sourced from the Pra and Birim rivers, which are among the largest in the country.
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Many Ghanaians depend on the polluted rivers for daily supply of drinking water.
“Our water bodies are being destroyed, and soon we’ll have nothing left,” Asante said. “We can’t drink gold, and we can’t grow crops on poisoned land”.
“We cannot sit by and watch as our rivers and water bodies are poisoned with mercury,” said protest leader Henry Tagoe. “Illegal mining is destroying our environment and our future.”
Labour unions said they will begin a nationwide strike October 10 to force authorities to take urgent action.
