May 20, 2018

(Modernghana.com)

A powerful campaign dubbed Jammeh2JusticeGhana has been launched in Accra, the Ghana capital, calling for prosecution of former Gambian leader, Yahya Jammeh, for the 2005 massacres of 44 innocent Ghanaian migrants in the Gambia, who were on their way to seek greener pastures in Europe and were allegedly mistaken for coup plotters by Jammeh's intelligence. Bringing Jammeh to trial in Ghana would be only a first step to ensure that the former Gambian strongman does not escape the wings of justice.

The Chair of the event was none other than Justice Emile Short, the very effective first Chairperson of the Ghana Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice, and former ad litem Judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.

In fact, the collective effort to seek justice for the Ghanaian victims started as far back as in 2007, when Africa Legal Aid (AFLA), and the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative Africa Office, established the Gambia Task Force. Other Ghana based groups and individuals later joined.

'God Bless Our Homeland Ghana'
The removal of Jammeh from office and his relocation to Equatorial Guinea paved the way for a re-launch and intensification of the campaign. Human Rights Watch took the lead and is represented by Reed Brody, renowned for the role he played as advocate for the victims of former Chadian leader Hisséne Habré, who was convicted of crimes against humanity, torture, sexual slavery, and sentenced to life on 30 May 2016, by the Extraordinary African Chambers within the Courts of Senegal.

Organizations involved in the Jammeh2JusticeGhana campaign include Trial International, CDD Ghana, and Africa Centre for International Law and Accountability. Read More