The Ukrainian Mission in Ghana took a strange path recently when it sought to overstep its boundaries in a manner that could undermine media freedom in Ghana.
Supposedly irked by publications that talked about Ukraine’s drone attacks on Russia on the eve of the Victory Day commemoration in May this year, the Ukrainian Embassy sought to have all those publications pulled down.
The details of this effort as reported by The Insight newspaper this week exposed a character that is more common and acceptable in Ukraine than in mature democracies.
According to The Insight, the head of the Ukranian Embassy, asked that the publications by The Insight and three other media platforms in Ghana be pulled down from public consumption.
It may seem that the diplomat was only playing his role as a chief ambassador for his country, but that action is a massive transgression that invades the territorial sovereignty of Ghana.
All that must be understood within a context. The war with Russia has become a major stress on Ukraine in the three years Russia’s special military operation has lasted.
Russia has stated that the operation is to liberate Russian-speaking people within the geographical setting of Ukraine on account of the constant threat they face for speaking Russian in public.
In essence, Ukraine does not offer the space for freedom to speak a native language different from what the government of Ukraine prescribes or tolerates.
In Ghana, no such restrictions exist, with the country enjoying the benefits of the democratic path it took under the Fourth Republic.
In the publication in The Insight on Wednesday, June 9, 2025, the newspaper states that: “Unhappy about the article, the Ukrainian diplomat is said to have forced one of the online portals to pull down the story after threats were issued”.
“Checks conducted reveal frantic attempts to force the Ukrainian narrative on these media outlets, including The Insight, which was rejected outright as he made false accusations against these entities claiming that they were pushing the so-called ‘Russian propaganda’.
The larger implication is the attempt to undermine the sovereignty of Ghana and the freedom of the Ghanaian media to ventilate the concerns of the marginalized in a fair manner.
It should not have happened that a Ukrainian diplomat would want to overreach its powers, but this should not be repeated in a country like Ghana where the people cherish their freedom.
