Update - UNHCR takes position on recent refugee crisis in Ghana

This is a summary of what was said by the UNHCR spokesperson at today's Palais des Nations press briefing in Geneva.

Following a deportation on Sunday 23 March of 16 Liberians by the Ghanaian authorities - 13 of them registered with UNHCR as refugees – we have urged Ghana to cease any further forcible removals.

The deportation followed a five-week sit-in demonstration by a group of Liberians which started last month on 19 February at the Buduburam refugee settlement, some 35 km west of the country's capital city Accra. Refugees were demanding to be resettled to third countries or, if they were to return to Liberia, for the return grant, currently $100, to be increased to $1,000. Despite our extensive efforts to promote dialogue and convince the demonstrators to express themselves within the confines of Ghanaian law, the group engaged in increasingly threatening and disruptive action.

After having shown restraint for over a month, the Ghanaian authorities arrested some 630 demonstrators on March 17. The group was taken to a youth training facility at Kordiabe in the east of the country, where they were visited and assisted by UNHCR. On the evening of 21 March 2008, UNHCR negotiated the release of 90 of the most vulnerable of the group, including separated children and pregnant women.

However, the following day on March 22, we were informed of the arrest of some 70 Liberians from Buduburam. We immediately requested the authorities to be granted access to the group. This request was still pending when we learned that 16 people from the group had been deported to Liberia early in the morning on March 23.
Thirteen of them - 10 men and 3 women – were refugees.

We regret the deportation of this group of refugees and hope that our ongoing negotiations with the Ghanaian authorities will help resolve the situation of the refugees still in detention.

The demonstration stopped on Monday. We are continuing to try and persuade the refugee community to use existing channels to address their issues as well as reminding them of their obligation to obey the laws and regulations of their country of asylum.

There are 26,967 Liberians officially registered as refugees in Ghana - most live in Buduburam refugee camp. From October 2004 to June 2007 UNHCR ran a major repatriation programme for Liberian refugees who has fled to various West African countries during a brutal civil war. Some 105,000 Liberian refugees returned home
under the programme.

Stories from the Field

For play-by-play updates on the developing crisis in Ghana, visit our coalition partner's website:

White Tara Productions

Telling you the Facts - Giving a Voice to the Voiceless

Here is a phone interview with a refugee spokesperson for the women's movement, Cecelia Garlo - thanks tons to White Tara Productions who put this together in no time at all.

Don't forget to sign the online petition calling for the safeguarding of the rights of refugees in Ghana!

600 refugee women and children facing deportation - action required

Following the recent events, a group of NGOs and individuals who work and have worked in the Buduburam refugee settlement have come together to call on the international community to insure that the rights of all refugees in Ghana are upheld.

We are gravely concerned for the fate of the 600 detained refugee women and children, who are facing imminent deportation - we humbly ask for your support in order to press authorities to respect the rights of refugees.

Please click here to sign the petition calling on authorities to uphold the rights of refugees in Ghana

We will pass it on to authorities very shortly.

On behalf of the Liberian refugees in Ghana, thank you for your support.

The Niapele Project Team

Stories from the Field - exposing the truth

We, at The Niapele Project, are completely appalled by the lack of journalistic (dare we say "human"?) integrity displayed in the media coverage of the current situation in the Buduburam refugee settlement.

Here is the latest update from Jessica Leombruno, who managed to get her hands on official documents released by the UNHCR as well as the Ghanaian Ministry of Interior last week, prior to the dramatic events of March 17th.

For a bit of context, they were released on the day that the 20 Liberian representatives went to Accra. That day, they met with a UNHCR representative (I believe the same one that is mentioned in the documents), and Ghanain authorites - Ministry of Interior and police chief, I believe. MD [a Liberian refugee who runs an NGO that works to improve the livelihoods of Ghanaian farmers,ndlr] was one of the 20 representatives. He told me that when they arrived, they were searched at gun point (while the press was made to stay outside, of course) and there were armed guards present during the meeting as well. While no compromise was actually reached, MD was encouraged by their response to integration into Ghana. He said that in response to their concerns about integration, the Ghanaian representatives adamently agreed that integration was not a possibility and that they had no interest in integrating the Liberian population either.
The representatives returned to camp feeling that they had made a significant advancement - at least integration was off the table. Upon returning to the camp though, the following press releases/documents were circulating - condeming the refugees for thier unwillingness to integrate. What an obvious difference between what people are willing to say when there is no one there (besides refugees) to substaniate what they are saying and what they release publicly

Apologies for the poor quality of the documents below - but you can click on the images for a larger view:




Please share these stories - post them on Facebook, on your blog, email your friends....

Hundreds of women and children are facing an immediate threat of unjust deportation - we need your help to make sure that the truth is exposed, and that the rights of refugees are being safeguarded.

Stay tuned for more information....

Stories from the Field - update

While we wait for an update from Jess, here is a link with the most updated news concerning the situation at the Buduburam refugee settlement.

We will continue to monitor this story, and provide you with the most accurate coverage possible.

Images of Buduburam

Click here for recent photos of the women's protest in Buduburam We continue to monitor the situation, and will bring you regular updates!