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Eleven people recently deported from the United States have taken legal action against the Ghanaian government, arguing that their detention in a military camp is unlawful.
Their lawyer, Oliver-Barker Vormawor, said that none of the deportees had broken Ghanaian law and demanded that the state produce them in court to justify why they were being held against their will.
The government has not yet responded to the lawsuit. However, it previously confirmed plans to accept another 40 deportees under an agreement with the US—a deal opposition MPs say must first be ratified by parliament. They have called for its immediate suspension.
Confusion over numbers
Last week, President John Mahama announced that 14 West Africans deported from the US had arrived in Ghana, but later said they had all been sent on to their countries of origin. Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa contradicted him, saying only “most” had been returned.
The new court filing directly challenges both claims, insisting that 11 remain in detention in Ghana.
According to documents submitted to the court, the group was previously held in a US detention facility before being shackled and flown out on a military cargo aircraft.
Wider deportation crackdown
The deportations form part of US President Donald Trump’s hard-line immigration policy, under which he has pledged record numbers of removals.
Ghana’s foreign minister said on Monday that accepting the deportees was motivated by “humanitarian principle and pan-African empathy,” stressing that the decision should not be seen as an endorsement of Washington’s immigration stance.
Meanwhile, five of the detainees—three Nigerians and two Gambians—have separately filed suit against the US government, claiming they were protected by a court order and should not have been deported.
