The Supreme Court has, by a unanimous decision of five, ordered the Attorney General to produce for private inspection by lawyers of Democracy Hub the agreement entered into by Ghana with the US over the deportation of West African nationals.
This follows a ruling on an application for discovery in a matter in which Democracy Hub is challenging the constitutionality of the agreement.
The panel, chaired by Justice Gabriel Pwamang, with Justices Ernest Gaewu, Richard ADJEI-Frimpong, Senyo Dzamefe, and Hafisata Amaleboba, said the documents should only be inspected by lawyers for the plaintiffs.
The Court held that, having viewed the documents in chambers, and having considered the submissions of the parties for the application for discovery, the documents should be inspected by the plaintiffs’ lawyers.
The Court also ordered that a copy of the documents also be made available to the president of the panel to assist in the adjudication in the substantive matter.
The action was filed by the civil society organisation, Democracy Hub, against the government over what it describes as an unconstitutional and secret Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the United States of America on the deportation of West African nationals.
The group, through its lawyers Merton & Everett LLP, argues that the agreement violates the 1992 Constitution and Ghana’s obligations under international law, including the 1951 Refugee Convention, the Convention Against Torture, and the OAU Refugee Convention.
The suit seeks 28 reliefs, including a declaration that the MOU is unconstitutional and an order restraining government from implementing it.
The group maintains that the agreement required parliamentary ratification under Article 75(2) but was secretly concluded without it, making it null and void.
Democracy Hub contends that, under the arrangement, 42 individuals have already been involuntarily repatriated into Ghana from the United States and detained under armed military custody at the Bundase Military Training Camp.
The detainees were allegedly held for weeks without charge, access to lawyers, or basic facilities.
The group insists that detaining civilians and asylum seekers in a military facility is a gross violation of Articles 14, 15, and 19 of the Constitution, which guarantee liberty, human dignity, and fair trial rights. It described the treatment of the deportees as “inhumane and degrading.”
According to EIB Network’s Legal affairs Correspondent, the Court directed the substantive matter will take it’s normal cause.
Source: Starrfm.com.gh
