Avellon Williams
GHANA- In Obuasi, in Ghana’s Ashanti region, heavily armed soldiers have fired shots at protesters amid a crackdown on illegal miners by the government.
According to AngloGold, authorities arrested seven illegal miners on Monday after they exited a shaft belonging to one of the world’s largest gold miners.
On Tuesday, reports began to trickle in that hundreds more miners were trapped underground. Whether those still underground were unable to escape or reluctant to do so was unclear.
Family members reported that the miners had been trapped without food or water for days. Several of those who got out were arrested for operating illegally in the area, their families said, police were requesting cash payments to free them.
“My husband is one of those who are trapped,” a woman who declined to give her name told Al Jazeera. “There is no other job in the area so we depend on mining for a living.”
For their release, police were demanding $2,700 per person, according to the woman.
It was possible to hear the screams of those still underground, according to one man. “They are dying!” he said. “What’s wrong with people going to work to try and make ends meet?”
According to AngloGold, “unauthorised persons underground are able to exit.”
“No person underground has been confined in any way and the main exit ramp from the mine remains open,” it said, according to AFP.
Several clashes break out
Local residents gathered outside the local police station on Tuesday, chanting, burning car tyres, and blocking roads.
Faustina Amissah, the town’s mayor, confirmed the deployment of soldiers.
“It was becoming chaotic, so the security officers did what was lawful to maintain peace,” she said, adding that protesters had “vandalised a bus carrying 52 suspects to the police station”.
In the West African country, illegal mining has become a major source of income for many poor people.
Upon taking office in 2017, President Nana Akufo-Addo promised to eradicate illegal mining, known locally as “galamsey”.
While authorities regularly take away excavators from illegal sites, the practice persists.
Last year, the Obuasi mine produced 250,000 troy ounces (7,776kg) of gold from its depth of 1,500 metres (almost 5,000 feet).
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