A diplomatic row has erupted between South Africa and Ghana over claims that a Ghanaian man was killed during anti‑migrant protests. Ghana’s Foreign Affairs ministry received reports that Bashiru Isak, 40, was shot dead on Tuesday in Cape Town’s Khayelitsha township and has lodged a formal protest.
South Africa’s justice minister expressed concern that “Ghanaian authorities continue to communicate false information” about the incident. Police said there was no record of the Khayelitsha murder and confirmed they were investigating a separate shooting of a 35‑year‑old Ghanaian, Kwabena Boagen, linked to an extortion crime in Nyanga.
The Ghanaian Foreign Ministry called this “an unacceptable taking of life” and demanded a full, transparent investigation by South African authorities, threatening legal action. South Africa denied any connection between the protest and the death.
The backdrop for the conflict is a growing anti‑immigrant sentiment in South Africa. The country’s high unemployment rate of over 30 % fuels hostility toward migrants from neighboring countries, leading to a January deadline for non‑citizens to depart the nation. A wave of repatriations has already seen roughly 25,000 people leave.
Police reported that the protest on Tuesday was largely peaceful, though about nine‑hundred arrests were made mostly on immigration offences and looting charges.
Both sides are currently seeking to resolve the incident amid a broader debate over migrant safety and human rights in South Africa.
