Police for Ghana don arrest one activist Oliver Barker-Vormawor and 44 odas wey stage three-day demonstration for di capital ova illegal gold mining (galamsey).
Dis na afta di service don tok say im and oda protesters wey belong to one group dey call democracy hub engage for “unlawful acts” for di area close to di seat of goment during dia demonstration.
Di group bin plan di protest for 21 – 23 September wey be di birthday of Ghana first president Dr Kwame Nkrumah.
Dem tok say dey wan picket in front of di seat of goment make di president take action to deal wit illegal mining wey don scatter di kontri water bodies and forest reserves.
For dis same time last year, dis group of young pipo wey bin mobilise for social media under di hashtag #FixTheCountry don demonstrate for three days ova high cost of living and economic crisis.
Dis time dem decide say dey go demonstrate about illegal gold mining.
But police try to stop di protest, dem go court go carry injunction put on top di demonstration but dey tok say dem go provide protection for di demonstrators if dey change di routes dey wan use.
But di democracy hub maintain say dem go use di route wey dey about 500 meters from di seat of goment.
Na so Ghana police deploy thousands of police wey dey block major streets for di center of di capital around di seat of goment say dey don dey do operation.
Dis cause plenty inconvenience for pipo wey dey use di road for dat day, wey di demonstrators gather for one intersection close to di military hospital.
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Police arrest demonstrators on day 2
Afta day one don end on Saturday, police bin issue statement wey dey tok say “di demonstrators block road wey dey prevent cars from moving.”
Dey also tok say di demonstrators engage for wetin dey describe as “uncivil and unghanaian actions”.
Na so on di second day of di protest, dey don arrest 42 pipo.
Di police inside videos wey go viral bin manhandle some of di protesters, wey dey arrest dem including a 62-year-old grandmama and a pickin wey dey 10 years.
Di police also carry force to remove one van wey di demonstrators carry go di protest site wey get dia food and water.
According to di police, dat van don dey obstruct traffic – sometin di leadership of di demonstration bin deny.
During di process of towing di truck, na so lead convener Oliver Barker-Vormawor don remove car key from di police tow van wey im throw am away.
Di police say wetin im do na unlawful na so dey declare say dey wan arrest am.
Oliver explain say di law dey allow pesin to immobilize im property wia somebody wan carry unlawful means take carry away.
Im also tok say di police know wia dey fit find am, wey im dey ready to visit any station dey go invite am for, togeda wit im lawyers.
Afta di video don go viral for social media, police decide say dey go arrest di protesters , wia dey carry about 42 of dem away.
Organizers of democracy hub bin accuse di police say dey deny di arrested pipo access to dia lawyers, food, water and female sanitary items.
Dey also tok say di police neva tok dem wia dey carry di pipo dey arrest to since Sunday afternoon.
On day 3 of di demo, many pipo no show up sake of dey fear say police go arrest dem – two pipo wey carry placards go di area also chop arrest on Monday.
Inside one statement by di police Monday afternoon dey tok say dey don arrest Oliver Barker-Vormawor.
Some civil society and pressure groups bin bash di police say dey use force on protesters wia no carry weapons.
Dey tok say di police suppose protect citizens no be to abuse dia rights and manhandle dem.
One of di groups, Economic Fighters League (EFL) don tok say “di police perpetrate violence against citizens wey dey carry out dia basic rights; wey we condemn wetin dey do.”
“Di police don show over time say dey dey ready to rather protect di rotten establishment instead of to protect di citizens.”
Who be Oliver Barker-Vormawor
Oliver na lawyer wey im be PhD research student for di faculty of law for di University of Cambridge.
Im be governance advisor wey sabi law and policy for many African kontris, di US and within di United Nations.
Di lawyer also bin work bifor as diplomat for di foreign service of Ghana wia im also work for oda law firms for di US.
Im previous degrees be from di universite Mohammed V, Souissi, Rabat and di Universite Hassan II, Cassablanca for Morocco, di university of Ghana and di Harvard Law school for di US.
Oliver return to Ghana wey im begin to do activism and advocacy for many tins including human rights, cost of living, constitution reforms and police brutality.
In 2021, Oliver bin lead advocacy for justice for one activist wey don dey demand change for one community wey dey call Ejura for di Ashanti region of di kontri.
Oliver bin push for compensation and justice for di pipo wia don die for dat protest thru di #FixTheCountry movement.
Oliver also bin dey use social media to mobilise young pipo say make dey demand dia rights from goment.
In 2022, police don arrest Oliver for airport as im return to Ghana from one trip abroad.
According to di police, im post for Facebook wey im dey call for “coup d’etàt”.
In di meantime, Oliver still dey advocate for many tins.
Oliver lead #EndGalamseyNow protest
Ova di last one month, tok tok for Ghana na about illegal gold mining (galamsey).
Almost all di kontri water bodies don dey polluted sake of di activities of illegal miners on top dis water bodies.
Di colour of di water don turn brown like chocolate.
Di Ghana water company bin complain say dey no fit to process di contaminated water from di rivers sake of dey get plenti chemicals like mercury, cyanide, cobalt and lead.
Sabi pipo fear say if dis pollution continue, Ghana go fit import water by 2030.
Many sabi pipo for di health sector, like di Ghana medical association and di paediatric society of Ghana bin tok say “galamsey don dey cause deformities for babies for di areas wey galamsey dey happun.”
“Illegal mining also bin cause increase in liver, lung, kidney cancer among di citizens sake of di chemical inside di water wey pipo dey drink wey dey take some dey water plants and oda foodstuff for farms.”
Na so citizens don vex say make goment take immediate action against di illegal mining.
Organized labour, media coalition against galamsey, university teachers union and oda ogbonge groups don give goment up to di end of September say make dey ban all forms of small scale gold mining for di kontri.
Dey also wan make goment declare state of emergency ova di mata.
Di groups also wan make di leading presidential candidates for di 7 December elections to declare dia stance against illegal mining and commit say dey go deal wit am if dey win power.
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