The Ghana Police Service is being accused of wrongfully arresting and securing the remand of some ‘innocent’ individuals during their recent crackdown on Democracy Hub protestors over the weekend.
Between Sunday, September 22, and Monday, September 23, 2024, the police arrested over 40 persons for engaging in what they described as acts of lawlessness at the 37 Intersection in Accra during the protest against illegal mining.
However, after presenting some of the suspects before a court on Tuesday, the police are being accused of rounding up individuals who were not participants in the protest and putting them before the court.
The police are also accused of grossly violating the rights of the arrested individuals, including refusing them access to their families, legal counsels, and basic necessities such as food.
The victims include a four-month pregnant woman and her husband, who say they were bystanders at the 37 Intersection but were picked up by the police.
“We are not even protesters, and then you take us… our parents don’t even know where we are…” the pregnant woman screamed while being led into a waiting police bus after a court refused her and 38 others bail on Tuesday.
I'm a mate, am not among of them😭💔
— 🇬🇭𝓃𝓀𝓌𝒶𝓈𝒾𝒶𝓉𝓌ℯℯ𝓉𝓈💙 (@achana_samuel) September 24, 2024
pic.twitter.com/M4vlhfOsFp
The family of another suspect, Priscilla Toboli, is accusing the police of denying her access to medical care and communication while in custody.
According to her family, Toboli, who is diabetic, asthmatic, and a glaucoma patient, was arrested while live-streaming the protest on TikTok at the 37 Military Hospital intersection on Sunday.
Her family, upon learning of her arrest, began searching for her across multiple police stations in Accra. Eventually, they located her at the Kaneshie Police Station that evening but were denied any form of access or communication to her.
Her brother, who has been leading the family’s efforts to contact her, says officers at Kaneshie cited strict instructions from the Greater Accra Regional Command, which prohibited any visitation or legal counsel for detainees associated with the protest.
“We were told that no family member or lawyer could have access to her because of orders from the regional command. We just wanted to check on her health and find out how we could assist,” her brother told the media gathered at the court premises on Tuesday.
According to the brother, a police officer who identified himself as Inspector Ken had earlier contacted them to inform the family of her deteriorating health.
However, when the family arrived at the National Police Headquarters as instructed, they were once again denied entry, with no response from the officer who had called them.
“The call we received was alarming. They said she wasn’t fine, but when we arrived, no one would let us in or update us on her condition. Her health is fragile, and we need to know if she’s okay,” her brother said.
Aftermath of Democracy Hub Protest: Detained diabetic patient's health deteriorating#News360 pic.twitter.com/1QNmSTu7sJ
— #TV3GH (@tv3_ghana) September 24, 2024
According to a male suspect, he was returning from mass when he was arrested by the police as part of the protesters.
Infuriated by his unfortunate arrest, the suspect, still in his white church clothes, was heard shouting, “I was coming from mass... God will punish you for this...” while being led into custody after being remanded with others.
🚨ICYMI🇬🇭✊🏾👨🏿⚖️: A citizen, mistakenly identified as a protester by @GhPoliceService during the recent #ReOccupyJulorbiHouse #StopGalamseyNow protest, was arrested on his way home from mass on Sunday.
— Ölele | DTS👨🏾🍳🇬🇭 (@OleleSalvador) September 24, 2024
Along with him, a few others, including a trotro mate who were not part of the… https://t.co/oryELfkND6 pic.twitter.com/VqU8bLldBS
A suspect who looked to be in his 20s took the brief moment of being led away into custody to tell his story to the media.
“I am a [trotro] mate, I am not among...” he shouted.
Social media influencer and legal practitioner, Elorm Ababio, alias Ama Governor, expressed her distress after being held in police custody for 48 hours without food or water.
The influencer was part of the 41 persons arrested during the protest.
Appearing at the Accra Circuit Court on Tuesday, in handcuffs, Ama Governor spoke emotionally to the press, detailing the harsh conditions she has endured since her arrest.
"I want to go, so they grant us bail, 48 hours, no food, no water," she cried out.
The family of Nii Quaye Hammond, one of the suspects who is also believed to have been arrested under questionable circumstances, told his story to the media.
According to Hammond’s daughter, he was supposed to bury his father on Monday and had informed his family that he was going to Osu when he was arrested.
Nii Hammond, who is the breadwinner of his family and was responsible for his late father’s burial, was wrongfully arrested as a bystander, according to his daughter.
Sadly, Hammond missed his father’s funeral, which was underway at Korle Gonno at the time of his appearance in court.
Earlier, Lawyers of Protest Defence, a group of lawyers acting as representatives of the Democracy Hub protesters, said they were unjustifiably denied access to those arrested by the police.
According to the lawyers, several attempts, including an official letter written to the police administration requesting details such as the names of those arrested, their locations, courts, dates, and times of their arraignment, received no response.
Release on Protestors!#ReOccupyJulorbiHouse #StopGalamseyNow pic.twitter.com/DJPS5rrbtU
— #Fixthecountry (@Ghfixthecountry) September 23, 2024
Meanwhile, the Ghana Police Service, in a statement following the remand of the 38 suspects, announced that the Attorney General’s Office had assumed direct responsibility for the prosecution of the suspects.
The remaining suspects, including Oliver Barker-Vormawor, a lead convenor of Democracy Hub, are expected to be put before a court later on Wednesday.
𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒 𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄:
— Ghana Police Service (@GhPoliceService) September 24, 2024
𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐄 𝐔𝐏𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐒𝐈𝐗 (𝟔): 𝐂𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐓 𝐑𝐄𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐒 𝟑𝟗 𝐀𝐂𝐂𝐔𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐒 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐄𝐌𝐎𝐂𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐘 𝐇𝐔𝐁 𝐃𝐄𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐄 pic.twitter.com/T7666ctJM3
The arrest of the suspects and the actions of the police have ignited a campaign on social media calling for their release amidst various concerns over the state of Ghana’s water bodies and forest cover as a result of illegal mining activities.
🚨BREAKING🇬🇭✊🏾👨🏿⚖️: Heartbreaking scenes as Evangelist Winnie’s pregnant sister-in-law and her husband who were bystanders at the #ReOccupyJulorbiHouse #StopGalamseyNow protest have also been denied bail at Circuit Court 6.
— Ölele | DTS👨🏾🍳🇬🇭 (@OleleSalvador) September 24, 2024
They will also be in remand custody until October 8 at… https://t.co/ztTRdoH9cS pic.twitter.com/ao8Dhy8nrg
Ama Governor, a popular activist and outspoken advocate for social justice, found herself at the center of controversy after leading a peaceful protest in Accra. The demonstration, aimed at addressing police brutality and governmental corruption, had gained momentum as thousands… pic.twitter.com/I1ZEXi9j8j
— Qwofi Manuel 🇬🇭 (@qwofi_emma) September 24, 2024
GA/AE
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