Two Ghanaian nationals have formally asked the International Criminal Court to open a preliminary investigation into xenophobic attacks in South Africa, arguing that the assaults on foreign nationals could amount to crimes against humanity.
The petition was submitted to the ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor in The Hague on 15 July by Dr Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, a former Ghanaian government spokesperson on governance and security, alongside Emmanuel Kotin, a counter-terrorism and security analyst at the Africa Centre for Security and Counter Terrorism. Reuters reported on 22 July that it had seen the document.
According to the petition, there is a “pattern of widespread and systematic attacks” targeting migrants across South Africa, and the document accuses President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government of failing to prevent, investigate or punish those responsible, including in cases involving murder.
The filing follows a fresh wave of anti-immigrant protests, some of which have spilled into xenophobic attacks in South Africa in recent months. Protesters have blamed foreign nationals for crime and unemployment. Several African migrants have been killed in the unrest, while others have been assaulted and have watched their homes and shops looted. Tens of thousands are reported to have fled the country as a result.
Repeated xenophobic attacks in South Africa are not a new phenomenon. The country has experienced periodic outbreaks over the years, despite migrants making up only around 5% of the population, a figure that is low by international standards.
In their petition, Boakye-Danquah and Kotin drew comparison with Liberia’s Charles Taylor, who was held to account when state power failed to protect civilians. “We cannot allow the killing of Africans by Africans to be normalised,” the petition stated, according to Ghanaian outlet Modern Ghana.
The petitioners stressed that their action is not directed at the South African people, describing the country as a sister nation and a leading voice on the continent. They framed the appeal as matter of justice and shared humanity, invoking the African philosophy of Ubuntu. “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 blood of all of us,” the petition read, as cited by Ghanamma.
Beyond the ICC, the two men have also appealed to the African Union, ECOWAS and international human rights bodies to take a firmer stand against xenophobic attacks in South Africa and elsewhere on the continent.
South Africa’s foreign affairs ministry has pushed back on the petition. Spokesperson Chrispin Phiri told Reuters that the move was opportunistic, insisting that the country already has a sophisticated domestic legal framework with comprehensive safeguards against discrimination, including intolerance rooted in social origin.
Ramaphosa has previously condemned attacks on foreign nationals and has warned against scapegoating migrants for the country’s deeper socio-economic problems. Whether that stance will feature in any formal government response to the petition remains to be seen.
For now, the case sits with the ICC, a court that prosecutes war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. It has not yet responded publicly to the filing. The Office of the Prosecutor will need to assess whether the allegations of xenophobic attacks in South Africa meet the threshold for a preliminary examination, a process that can take months before any decision on a formal investigation is reached.
The petition adds an international legal dimension to a crisis that has already strained diplomatic relations across the region, as xenophobic attacks in South Africa continue to generate concern among African governments. Nigeria has previously repatriated citizens from South Africa, while Ghana was reported to have deferred a planned visit by Ramaphosa over the unrest.
