Due to difficulties finding translators, the High Court in Accra, presided over by Justice Lydia Osei Marfo, has threatened to release the four people who are allegedly Aisha Huang’s collaborators and are charged with unlawful mining.
If there is no interpreter who can speak Chinese and Vietnamese, the court will free the accused “either conditionally or unconditionally,” Justice Marfo declared as he adjourned “this matter for the last time.”
Shi Yang, also known as Philip, Li Wei Guo, and Shi Mei Zhi, three Chinese nationals, were accused of violating section 99(2)(a) of the Minerals and Mining Act of 2006 (Act 703) as modified by Act 995 of 2019 by engaging in small-scale mining without a permit.
In their second court appearance on October 24, they have all entered not guilty pleas.
But since September 16, no action has been taken on the plea of Nguyen Thi Thanh Tuyen, a Vietnamese national allegedly accused with violating sections 20(1) and 52(1)(d) of the Immigration Act, 2000 (Act 573) by staying in Ghana after the expiration of a permission.
A plan to have a Vietnamese interpreter appear in court on Tuesday, November 1, when the case was called for her plea to be taken, fell through.
On October 24, the court issued a directive ordering the Registrar of the Court to make sure an interpreter is present in court at all times the matter is discussed until the case is resolved.
The Registrar of the Court gave the court an explanation when the order did not materialize.
We have a request or piece of information to get a Vietnamese interpreter, so my Registrar wrote to the Court Manager to enable the same, the Registrar stated while informing the court.
The Court Manager’s office also requested in writing to the Head Office that a letter be sent to the Ghana Institute of Languages (GIL), according to the Registrar.
He testified before the court that the GIL had connected them with Brother Solomon, a man who would arrange for the Vietnamese interpreter.
Brother Solomon claims that the interpreter left the country while he (Brother Solomon) stayed in contact with him.
“We’ve been trying to get the interpreter to come down and help all this time. Brother Solomon’s final comment to the court was, “Can it be done by zoom?,” the Registrar said.
He said, “I went to visit the Court Manager with the Chief of Interpreters with Judicial Service, and she acknowledged that the zoom can be done.
The challenge, according to the registrar, is that they require the interpreter’s email in order to complete the zoom.
We called Brother Solomon to ask for the interpreter’s email, and he told us he had passed it to the man but that he hadn’t heard back.
“He said he will try everything possible to acquire the email for the same to be provided to us so the zoom link to be done,” the Registrar stated.
“As of this morning, we have tried contacting bro Solomon, but he is not answering,” he stated.
In light of the fact that the Chief Interpreter also visited my office this morning (Tuesday), he called a representative from the Ghana Institute of Languages to inform her of the circumstance. She made a commitment to call him back.
He told the court, “She called back to say he was phoning Brother Solomon but he is not picking up.”
After hearing what the Registrar had to say, Her Ladyship Lydia Osei Marfo declared that the issues went beyond the court.
Since she claimed she only spoke Vietnamese at the last adjourned date, we were supposed to take the fourth accused’s plea today.
“Clearly, the Judicial Service lacks an interpreter for these languages,” the court declared. In actuality, the Chinese interpreter is not a member of the judiciary’s personnel either.
In addition, he was supplied by the Ghana Institute of Languages, the judge said.
“He too missed court today (Tuesday) because he had to leave the country to conduct his own business activities. Rarely does the court take on challenges like this, she said.
This court cannot fairly hear this case, the judge ruled. We are unsure about the court interpreters who can communicate with the accused in their native tongues, particularly those who are fluent in foreign tongues like Chinese, Vietnamese, Dutch, and Spanish.
“I shall adjourn this matter for the final time in this court in order to provide an interpreter in Chinese and Vietnamese. I will either grant the accused people unconditional or conditional release.
The accused could receive their release in the upcoming 20 days, according to Murtala Inusah, Legal Affairs Correspondent for EIB Network. A new date of November 21, 2022, was set for the case.
On September 16, the Criminal Division of the Accra High Court remanded four more people who were allegedly Aisha Huang’s accomplices.
Three of the four are citizens of China, and the fourth is a Vietnamese national whose visa is alleged to have expired.
According to the succinct information provided to the court by Mercy Arthur, the Principal State Attorney, a team of agents from the Ministry of National Security, Accra, apprehended the suspects on September 14, 2022, after receiving intelligence.
She claimed that the first, second, and third accused—all citizens of China—were detained in their Paraku Estates home in the vicinity of Daban, Kumasi, in the Ashanti Region, together with the fourth accused, a citizen of Vietnam.
The four accused people engaged in illegal mining transactions with En Huang @ Aisha and other Chinese nationals at mining locations in the Obuasi municipality, according to early findings, according to the Principal State Attorney.
She testified before the court that a search of their home in Paraku Estates, Kumasi, turned up five payment receipts that served as proof that they had purchased mining concessions.
Additionally, she added, “it was revealed that the defendants and others use WeChat, a social media platform, for all correspondences related to their unlawful mining activities.
Investigations, according to her, also showed that the fourth accused person received a permit extension on May 9, 2022, allowing her to stay in Ghana until August 8, 2022, but the permit had already expired when she was arrested.
The four suspected people have been held to aid with the inquiry, and the Principal State Attorney highlighted that urgent efforts are being made to identify and apprehend their comrades.