Deputy Greater Accra Regional Manager of the Forestry Commission, George Agbenowoshi, has highlighted a concerning issue regarding the prosecution of Chinese nationals involved in illegal mining activities, known as galamsey.According to Mr Agbenowoshi, these individuals are frequently arrested but often released by the courts due to a lack of interpreters, leading to cases being dismissed.

He emphasized that the language barrier causes cases to drag on in court, ultimately resulting in dismissal.Speaking at a mini ceremony organized by Parliament for the 2024 Green Ghana Day, Agbenowoshi also expressed concerns about the challenges faced by district Forestry offices nationwide. He specifically mentioned the untimely release of funds and the legal hurdles encountered in prosecuting Chinese nationals involved in illegal mining activities.

“We have the challenge of timely release of funds for forestry-related activities including plantation activities in our sector and issues sent to court have been there for years without redress. Issues of mining activities involving Chinese that take an interpreter to translate are often thrown out of court as a result of the lack of an interpreter.”

The report by the Commission has not been welcomed by members of the general public who believe Ghana has Chinese interpreters. They cited tertiary institutions such as the University of Ghana where Chinese is being taught as a course.

In May 2023, Attorney General Godfred Dame said the office of the Attorney-General and Department of Justice was currently conducting criminal prosecutions against 727 persons who engaged in illegal mining activities across the country.

The minister enumerated other challenges impeding speedy prosecution of alleged illegal miners as lack of interpreters in cases involving foreign nationals and unwillingness of witnesses to give testimonies in courts for fear of being threatened by accused who lived in the same community as them.

In the case of a Ghanaian, it is now a term of a minimum of 15 years imprisonment and maximum of 25 years, together with a fine of minimum of 10,000 penalty units and not more than 15,000 penalty units.

In the case of a non-Ghanaian, Act 995 enhanced the punishment for the same offences to a term of a minimum of 20 years imprisonment and maximum of twenty-five years, together with a fine of a minimum one hundred thousand penalty units and not more than three hundred and fifty thousand penalty units.

The new punishment regime is in contrast to the situation under Act 703 passed in 2006, which prescribed a penalty of a minimum of 3,000 thousand penalty units or imprisonment of not more than five years for the offence of trading in minerals and mining without a licence.