No Ghanaian killed in xenophobic attacks — High Commissioner
Ghana’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Benjamin Quarshie, has rejected widespread reports claiming that Ghanaians have been killed in recent xenophobic attacks, insisting that no such fatalities have been recorded.
Speaking on PM Express with Evans Mensah, he stated, “So the current xenophobic actions that are going on, nobody has lost their lives.” His remarks come amid rising tensions and viral reports alleging that foreign nationals, including Ghanaians, have been attacked and killed in parts of South Africa.
Mr Quarshie said data available to the Ghanaian mission contradicts those claims, stressing, “The statistics are there; they’ve given it to us.”
He also addressed a widely circulated case involving a Ghanaian man reportedly killed in East London, explaining that the mission investigated the matter on the instructions of the Foreign Affairs Minister. “We went there yesterday on the instructions of the Foreign Affairs Minister,” he said.
According to him, findings showed the incident was not linked to xenophobic violence.
“We got to find out that the gentleman was stabbed to death by armed robbers, and it happened three weeks ago,” he explained, adding that authorities only became aware of the case later. “They just left his body there, and we only got to know after three weeks that the citizen had been stabbed to death.”
He said the government has since taken action, noting, “The Foreign Affairs Minister has officially asked them to open an investigation.” He added that plans to bury the deceased were halted to allow for a full probe. “In fact, they wanted to mass-bury the gentleman, but the Minister again gave instructions that the gentleman should not be buried until a full investigation is completed.”
Mr Quarshie stressed that the goal is to establish the facts and ensure justice, saying, “Until we know who killed him, why he was killed, and compensation given to his family.”
He confirmed that the victim’s family in Ghana has been identified and contacted.
“We’ve spoken to them. It has been a difficult one for them, because this is the breadwinner in the family,” he said, adding that the circumstances of the killing are deeply troubling: “When you hear the story as to how they killed him, it’s really, really pathetic.”
Despite the incident, he maintained it should not be conflated with xenophobic violence.
He also signalled a tougher approach going forward, stating, “But I’m sure that the era of Ghanaians or any other person being killed, and South African authorities just brushing it aside… that era is over.”
Pledging accountability, he added, “We would ensure there’s accountability. Will account for every single individual, be it Ghanaian, be it any African person, until justice is done, we will not stop.”
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