Eleven individuals detained in Ghana following their deportation from the United States have initiated legal action against the government of the West African nation, according to their legal counsel, who spoke with the BBC.
Oliver-Barker Vormawor, representing the deportees, asserts that his clients have not contravened any Ghanaian laws, rendering their confinement in a military facility unlawful.
The lawyer stated that he is seeking a court order compelling the government to present the group in court and provide justification for their continued detention.
While the government has yet to issue a formal statement regarding the lawsuit, it has previously indicated its intention to accept an additional 40 deportees. Opposition Members of Parliament are calling for an immediate halt to the deportation agreement, asserting that parliamentary ratification is legally mandated under Ghanaian law.
Last week, Ghana’s President John Mahama disclosed that 14 deportees of West African origin had arrived in the country, pursuant to an agreement with the US.
President Mahama later stated that all deportees had been repatriated to their respective countries of origin, a claim contradicted by Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, who clarified that only the majority had been returned.
Mr. Vormawor’s legal application challenges both accounts, maintaining that 11 deportees remain in detention within Ghana.
According to court documents, the 11 individuals were held in a US detention center before being shackled and transported via a military cargo aircraft.
These deportations are part of the US government’s intensified immigration enforcement policies implemented since President Donald Trump assumed office in January.
President Trump has pledged to execute an unprecedented number of deportations of undocumented migrants residing in the country.
Ghana’s Foreign Minister was quoted by Reuters news agency on Monday, stating that the decision to accept the deportees was rooted in “humanitarian principle and pan-African empathy”.
He added, “This should not be misconstrued as an endorsement of the immigration policies of the Trump administration.”
Five of the detainees, comprising three Nigerians and two Gambians, have also filed lawsuits against the US government, contending that they were protected by a court order and should not have been deported.
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