CONTENTS | ANB-BIA HOMEPAGE | WEEKLY NEWS
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Ghana
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JUSTICE
Ghana began the public sitting of its Reconciliation Commission in January 2003
Horrifying tales continue to unfold and many victims now have the hope that at last their stories will have been heard. Not to seek revenge, but as a means to come to terms with years of torment, frustration and anger.
Since the start of the reconciliation exercise this year, victims of human rights violations have continued to re-live the atrocities they suffered at various points of Ghana’s political history. The public, meanwhile, is acknowledging and sympathising with their pain, suffering and hurt.
The South African style reconciliation exercise was established by Act of Parliament in 2002 to provide justice, strengthen accountability and also provide a basis for apology and restitution.
Victims’ stories have been chilling. There have been accounts of the torture and false imprisonment of innocent people during the era of the Jerry Rawlings-led Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) and the Provisional National Defence Council (PNDC). There’s also been accounts of human rights violations during civilian administrations.
Hearing the evidence
The National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) moved into top gear following its inauguration in January, this year. But it had already started receiving complaints from September last year. To date, it has received a total of 2,800 complaints from individuals, families and groups. It has fully investigated 100 of them, which are now being heard.
The start of the Commission’s work has been a big «plus» for John Kufuor’s government. Upon winning the presidential election in 2000, Kufuor promised to set up the Commission in order to reconcile the nation after years of serious human rights violations and abuses, most of them having taken place during the years of unconstitutional regimes. The Commission’s scope is limited to this period.
Eyebrows have been raised over the genuineness of the whole process, since similar abuses also took place in the past under constitutionally elected governments. The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) led by former president Rawlings was clear on this point and made its feelings heard. The NDC had complained that the whole exercise was aimed at discrediting the two military regimes the former president led before being constitutionally elected.
However, the problem has been solved by inserting a special clause in the relevant law, providing «a window of opportunity» for similar cases which occurred during the period of constitutional governments, to be brought to the Commission for discussion. Minister of Justice Nana Akufo-Addo emphasises: «The process is not aimed at witch-hunting, but it is to acknowledge publicly, that thousands of Ghanaians have paid a very high price in the struggle for the entrenchment of democracy and rejection of tyranny. The Commission is not a court and it is not mandated to impose penalties or sanctions on any person. Grounded in a victim-centred approach, the work of the Commission is expected to result in recommendations in appropriate cases, for redress to be made to victims of egregious human rights violations.»
Most of the complaints so far received or those being heard publicly, are in the realm of unlawful seizure and/or destruction of property, unlawful detention, torture, unlawful arrest of relatives, physical abuse and murder of relatives by the security forces. All these reached a crescendo during Rawlings’ two terms as military leader.
The case-list
One significant point is, most of the cases presently being heard, have been lodged by former military and police officers who were censured by their own colleagues on suspicion of being involved in coups, or who had been dismissed without regard to their conditions of service. A few others have come from civilians who were wrongly punished as a result of over-zealousness by the military.
Former Corporal Rex Ohemeng recounts how he and his fellow-detainees were tortured without trial during the PNDC regime. Former Private Paul King Asimeng of the Ghana Armed Forces tells of his arrest, unlawful detention, torture and death threats in 1982 by operatives of the defunct PNDC, on suspicion of involvement in a plot to overthrow that government.
Togbe Satsimadza Afari II, a Chief, broke down in front of the Commission. He stated that his unlawful detention, torture and the sale of his property during the PNDC era, has resulted in his ill-health and a denial of adequate education and training to his children.
Counselling and reconciling
The Reconciliation Commission has also been able to put counsellors in all its zonal offices in the country to deal with victims’ emotional needs. Annie Anipa, the NRC‘s Director of Public Affairs, stresses: «Our counsellors have been making follow-up visits to the homes of aggrieved persons who are unable to come to the Commission’s offices. This is because counselling is an important aspect of the Commission’s work, as it is the beginning of the healing process which is vital for achieving reconciliation. Unlike normal court hearings, the NRC hearings are not to identify and punish offenders, but to ascertain the veracity of the complaints and recommend reparation and restitution by government for the victims».
She acknowledges that the task of reconciling a nation is not easy but, «the Commission draws inspiration from the fact that the majority of Ghanaians recognise the need to reconcile the nation, and the Commission will work harder to make the reconciliation process a reality.»
The Commission been able to reconcile a number of people who were wrongfully dealt with, with the perpetrators of the alleged crimes. Amidst thunderous applause, smiles and laughter by both members of the Commission and of the public present, a prison officer, who allegedly victimised a detainee, were reconciled at one of the sittings. The prison officer apologised on his own behalf and that of the Prison Service for excesses committed by prison officers. As a reconciliatory gesture, he embraced one of his victims, to the admiration of members of the Commission and the general public.
Although Rawlings’ name has been mentioned by some victims as being behind some of the atrocities, the Commission says no compelling evidence has been brought that could lead to an invitation being extended to the former president to appear before it.
The government has pledged to lend its total support to the Commission so that it can discharge its obligations successfully. The government remains committed to the Commission’s independence. It has provided significant financial and logistic support to the Commission’s work.
Before the Commissions’s work ends, it intends to consult the public about establishing a Reparations Fund for victims of human rights abuses.
But what drives Commission members forward with their delicate task? Bishop Charles Palmer-Buckle, Catholic Bishop of Koforidua, and a member of the NRC, says, belief in God is what has strengthened most Ghanaians to forgive perpetrators of human rights violations during the periods of unconstitutional rule.
Some of the victims have been destabilised mentally and emotionally and are suffering from physical and psychological disorders. Their testimonies at the public hearings are helping them to offload the pain in their hearts and to re-establish their lost dignity.