Accra: Managing Editor of the Insight newspaper, Kwesi Pratt Jnr., has stated that Ghana is not in a position to claim moral superiority over South Africa regarding the growing hostility towards African migrants. He argued that Ghana itself has a history of expelling foreign nationals, making it difficult to criticize South Africa's current situation.
According to Ghana Web, Pratt's comments come at a time when there is renewed concern over anti-immigrant sentiments in parts of South Africa. Planned protests and calls for the removal of undocumented foreign nationals have caused many African migrants, including Ghanaians, to fear for their safety. This has led some Ghanaians living in South Africa to return home, while others are closely monitoring the situation.
Pratt shared his observations during a segment on Radio Gold, following a four-day visit to Bela-Bela in Limpopo after his arrival in Johannesburg. He noted that he personally did not encounter any harassment during his stay. "I landed in Johannesburg and drove two and a half hours to Bela-Bela in Limpopo. I didn't have a scratch on my skin, nobody asked to see my passport, nothing. I stayed in Bela-Bela for four days... not a whimper against anybody. That's the reality," he stated.
Despite his experiences, conversations with some Ghanaians returning to Ghana revealed a growing anxiety over the situation. Pratt recounted that one traveller preferred to leave South Africa temporarily due to uncertainty about future developments and intended to return only if conditions improved.
Pratt also mentioned another Ghanaian who returned home after eight months in South Africa without securing a job, citing financial difficulties as a reason for his return. "Then there's one of them who told me that he's been to South Africa for eight months. He doesn't have a job. He's struggling to find a job... so there's no point risking his life. He decided to come back home, and even coming back home was difficult because he couldn't afford his ticket. It was relatives who bought the ticket for him," Pratt explained.
While acknowledging concerns about the treatment of migrants in South Africa, Pratt urged Ghanaians to remember their country's own history with foreign nationals before criticizing others. He recalled the 1969 Aliens Compliance Order under former Prime Minister Kofi Abrefa Busia, which led to the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of foreign nationals, primarily West Africans, from Ghana.
"We started the Alien Compliance Order, expelled hundreds of thousands of West Africans from Ghana for the same reasons that the March on March movement is marching in the streets of Johannesburg and other places against other Africans. Nigerians died in their hundreds as a result of the implementation of the Alien Compliance Order. Togolese were maltreated. Some of them were beaten and thrown out of their houses. We did it in 1969 or thereabouts under the Busia administration," he stated.
Pratt's remarks provide a historical context to the ongoing debate on migration and xenophobia, suggesting that African countries must confront their past actions while working collectively to ensure the rights, dignity, and safety of migrants across the continent.