Ghana’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Benjamin Quashie, says government decided to begin evacuating Ghanaians from South Africa after continued unrest and hostility against foreign nationals started affecting the safety and livelihoods of many citizens.
According to him, Ghanaian authorities initially engaged South African officials and proposed solutions to address the growing tensions, but the situation persisted despite expectations that the demonstrations would subside.
“We realised that in our engagement with the South African authorities, while we were offering solutions to what was happening, they took an entrenched position,” he said on Citi Eyewitness News on Thursday, May 28.
The High Commissioner explained that South African authorities maintained the belief that the demonstrators would eventually stop their actions, but incidents continued, leaving many Ghanaians facing economic hardship and insecurity.
“But it kept happening and most of our people had economic challenges,” he stated.
He said government eventually concluded that immediate action was necessary to protect affected Ghanaians from further hardship.
“When we got to the point where we realised if we don’t take a stance it will hurt our people, that was where we decided to start evacuating those who want to go home,” he added.
Quashie noted that the evacuation exercise has so far gone smoothly and will continue for all Ghanaians who voluntarily wish to return home.
“I must say it went well and we are continuing with the evacuation of all our citizens who want to go home voluntarily,” he said.
He also stressed that the government remains committed to protecting the welfare of Ghanaians both at home and abroad.
“The government of Ghana cares about its citizens both home and abroad and we have a President and a Foreign Affairs Minister who care deeply about what Ghanaians go through abroad,” he added.
The evacuation exercise is being coordinated through Ghana’s diplomatic mission in South Africa in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs following increasing reports of intimidation, attacks and hostility against foreign nationals in parts of the country. The first 300 people arrived in Accra yesterday.
Officials say temporary support, counselling and reintegration assistance have been arranged for affected persons arriving in Ghana.
The latest evacuations have once again drawn attention to recurring xenophobic violence in South Africa, where migrants from several African countries have periodically faced attacks during periods of economic hardship and social tension.
