Three Ghanaian journalists have been spotlighted by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) among nearly 30 environmental reporters across the world who have faced threats, attacks, and censorship for investigating environmental crimes and natural resource exploitation.
The list, compiled ahead of COP30, the next United Nations Climate Change Conference, highlights the growing risks faced by journalists covering illegal mining, deforestation, waste disposal, and pollution—especially in regions where environmental abuse is tightly linked to political and corporate power.
In Ghana, three journalists — Akwasi Agyei Annim, Erastus Asare Donkor, and Henry Fynn Emil—have endured violent attacks and intimidation for exposing illegal mining and environmental degradation.
Akwasi Agyei Annim, a correspondent for Channel One TV and Citi FM, was attacked alongside Henry Fynn Emil of Angel TV and Jacob Adu-Baah of ABC News in the Wassa Amenfi West District. The journalists were assaulted and prevented from filming an illegal mining operation on 21 February 2025. Their experience reflects a broader trend of hostility toward the press when environmental crimes threaten influential interests.
Similarly, Erastus Asare Donkor, a respected investigative journalist with the Multimedia Group Limited, has faced multiple violent reprisals for his award-winning coverage of galamsey, or illegal mining.
On 20 October 2024, Donkor and his crew were attacked by over ten armed men while investigating the destruction of farmland and water pollution caused by Edelmetallum Mining Resources Limited in the Ashanti Region. Their equipment was seized, and they were beaten and forced into a remote forested area. Fearing for his life, Donkor later fled Ghana ahead of the December 2024 elections.
These incidents underscore the dangers Ghanaian journalists face in exposing the environmental cost of illegal mining — an industry that continues to ravage the country’s water bodies and farmlands despite government interventions.
A global struggle for environmental truth
The Ghanaian cases mirror a global crisis of press freedom in environmental reporting. According to RSF, nearly 30 journalists worldwide have been killed, imprisoned, or attacked in the past decade for exposing illegal land exploitation, mining, pollution, and deforestation.
In Africa, Norbert Rucabihari from Burundi was arbitrarily arrested and threatened while investigating waste dumping in Lake Tanganyika. In Madagascar, Francis Ramanantsoa Mahasampo faced flagrant intimidation for covering protests against the controversial Base Toliara mining project.
Across Latin America, Asia, and Europe, the pattern continues. Brazilian journalists Katia Brasil, Eliane Brum, and Marcos Wesley have faced death threats and smear campaigns for reporting on deforestation and illegal mining in the Amazon. In Cambodia, Chhoeung Chheng was shot and killed while covering illegal logging in a protected reserve, while British reporter Gerald Flynn was banned from re-entering Cambodia for investigating forest destruction.
Rising dangers for environmental journalism
RSF notes that environmental reporting has become one of the most dangerous beats in journalism, as reporters challenge powerful corporate and political interests that profit from environmental destruction. Arbitrary arrests, censorship, death threats, and digital harassment have become common tactics to silence critical voices.
The organisation’s call for global solidarity and stronger protection for journalists comes as environmental degradation intensifies worldwide. With Ghana’s rich natural resources—and the ongoing fight against illegal mining—the safety of journalists like Donkor and Annim is a stark reminder that defending the environment also means defending press freedom.
