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44 dead Ghanians in Gambia CHRI wants govt. to act decisively
The Regional Coordinator of Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, Nana Oye Lithur has asked the government to make a statement at the end of its investigation on actions it intends to take to seek justice for the 44 men who died in Gambia last year.
She said Ghana should take diplomatic note of the failure of the Gambian government to prosecute the perpetrators. It must do everything within its diplomatic channels, and report the extra-judicial killing of foreigners in the Gambia to international and regional bodies including the Africa Human Rights Commission, to ensure that the perpetrators of that horrific act are brought to face the law for their crime.
She made this remark when she addressed a press conference to commemorate the Human Rights Day in Accra yesterday.
“Government should take a serious view of the state of affairs, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a matter of priority, provide regular updates on progress of their investigations, and the steps the Gambian Government has taken to apprehend and punish the perpetrators of this serious crime” she noted.
She said the most basic human right available is the right to life, that no person must be deprived of his or her life without justification. It is clear, she said, that 44 Ghanaian men have had their lives abused in the most brutal way, and that cannot go unpunished.
She asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to assure the families of the 44 men that the murderers of their loved ones would face the law, and that human rights for Ghanaian citizens no matter their geographical location would be protected by the state.
Nana Oye Lithur urged the government to set up a committee to resolve the boundary dispute between the Wildlife Department and the Shiare Community within the context of respect for the human rights of the Shiare Community as a minority group in Ghana.
She said the committee must acknowledge that socio-economic rights are at stake because of the destruction and loss of farmland. The children who cannot attend school have had their education jeopardized.
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