Key facts
- An international coalition of human rights lawyers and advocates sued Ghana.
- The lawsuit accuses Ghana of forcing deportees from the U.S. back to countries they had fled, violating their rights.
An international coalition of human rights lawyers has sued Ghana at the ECOWAS court, accusing the government of violating rights by deporting individuals from the U.S. to countries they fled. The case involves 27 people, part of a larger group deported under a U.S. agreement.
The lawsuit challenges the legality and human rights implications of third-country deportation agreements between the U.S. and African nations, potentially setting a precedent for future cases and impacting immigration policies.
An international coalition of human rights lawyers and advocates has sued Ghana, accusing the government of violating the rights of deportees by sending them to countries they had fled. The lawsuit, filed at the Community Court of Justice of the Economic Community of West African States, represents 27 individuals who were deported from the U.S. to Ghana as part of an agreement with the Trump administration.
According to the coalition, most of the 27 individuals were sent to their home countries within hours or days of arriving in Ghana, despite having received orders of protection from U.S. judges. Some described being shackled during their flights from the U.S. and held in poor conditions in military camps, hotels, and airport holding cells once in Ghana.
The case is the first to be brought under a 1979 regional treaty that guarantees free movement across West Africa. The coalition argues that Ghana's actions violate the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits sending individuals to places where they face persecution or torture. Ghana is one of at least nine African nations that have entered into such third-country deportation agreements with the U.S.
The lawsuit seeks to halt further transfers, compel Ghana to disclose the terms of its deportation agreement with the U.S., award damages to the deportees, and prevent the country from entering similar agreements in the future. A spokesperson for Ghana's government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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