Two Ghanaians have taken the f+ght against xenophobia in South Africa to the highest criminal court in the world.
Dr Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, a former Government Spokesperson on Governance and Security, and security analyst Emmanuel
Kotin have petitioned the International Criminal Court (ICC) to open a preliminary investigation into the repeated att+cks on foreign nationals, especially black Africans, in South Africa.
According to the petition, which was submitted on July 15 and has been seen by Reuters, the att+cks amount to a “pattern of widespread and systematic att+cks” against African migrants, and could constitute cr+mes against humanity.
The two are accusing President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government of failing to prevent the att+cks and failing to punish those behind the crimes, including m+rder.
“For years, African brothers and sisters have been k+lled, beaten, and driven from their homes in South Africa,” the petitioners said in a press release.
“While we commend individuals in South Africa who have condemned these acts, the pattern, scale, and recurrence of the violence raise serious questions about the failure of state authorities to prevent, investigate, and punish these cr+mes,” it added.
The petition itself carries a line that will touch every African reading this: “We are Africans. The blood of a Nigerian, Ghanaian, Zimbabwean, Mozambican, or Malawian killed in Johannesburg, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape or Western Cape is the [bl+od] of all of us.”
The petitioners have also called on the African Union, ECOWAS and international human rights bodies to support the effort, and say they are ready to provide additional evidence to the ICC Prosecutor’s Office.
South Africa fires back
The South African government is not taking the petition lightly at all. A spokesperson for the country’s Foreign
Affairs Ministry, Chrispin Phiri, described the petition as opportunistic.
“South Africa has a sophisticated domestic legal framework and legislation provides comprehensive safeguards and enforcement measures against discrimination of any kind, including intolerance on the grounds of social origin,” he told Reuters.
Why this matters to Ghana
South Africa has seen a fresh wave of anti immigrant protests in recent months, with some groups blaming foreigners for cr+me, unemployment and pressure on public services. Several African migrants have been k+lled, others be+ten, and homes and shops looted, with tens of thousands reportedly fleeing the country.
A Ghanaian national identified as Bashiru Isak was reportedly sh+t and k+lled in Cape Town’s Khayelitsha township during the unrest. Ghanaian authorities have linked his de+th to the xenophobic tensions, though South African authorities dispute that account and say the case is being investigated as an extortion related cr+me.
The ICC will now decide whether the petition provides enough grounds to open a preliminary examination.
Do you think the ICC should step in, or is this a matter Africa should solve internally?