5 Liberians left dead at the hands of ghanaian police!!!

modernghana.com

At least 5 Liberians have reportedly been shut dead by Ghanaian police at the Buduburan Refugee Camp outside Accra during a riot over leadership.

According to report, the incident occurred Sunday at a Church when a group of Liberian refugees attempted installing a new leadership despite call from the refugee board to halt the process.

Reports say there has been opposition against the current leadership at the Buduburan Camp headed by Varney Sambola. Mr. Sambola has been accused of tribalism and being in cohort with both the UNHCR and the Ghanaian authorities to relegate the interest of the Liberian refugees.

An eyewitness from the camp Decontee Tarnue, told this journalist via mobile that while at the Church, Ghanaian police allegedly stormed the edifice and demanded the Liberians to disperse, using tear gas after they have refused to leave.

Miss Tarnue further narrated that as the Liberians left the Church they allegedly began to stone the police, leaving the force with no alternative but to fire into the crowd with live weapons.

However, another Liberian Emmanuel Smith said the casualty among the refugee is about five, adding three persons, including a lady was shut in the breast, while two men were hit in the head.

Deputy Information Minister for Information Services Jerelimink Piah has confirmed the incident, but added that the Government of Liberia is yet to officially establish the facts surrounding the disturbance.

Police in Ghana have arrested a Liberian, Tyrone Marshall, said to be ringleader of the campaign to replace the current leadership on the camp. Other sources said the police are moving from house to house rounding up Liberians. Read more…

At least 1 dead in clashes at refugee camp in Ghana

cnn.com

By Israel Laryea, For CNN

February 13, 2011 —

Accra, Ghana (CNN) — At least one person has been confirmed dead in violence that broke out Sunday morning at a refugee camp in Ghana.

An unknown number of people were injured as police fired tear gas and bullets to control angry rock-throwing residents.

The residents were swearing in new leaders without the approval of the authorities. According to one eyewitness, the police surrounded the hall where the ceremony was set to take place and arrested two, including the leader who was about to be sworn in.

« As the police drove off with the two, some residents pelted the convoy and the police responded with gun shots and tear gas, » the eyewitness said.

A spokesman for the police, however, told CNN they were called in to quell disturbances between two rival factions both claiming to be the legitimate leaders. One faction was trying to install a new leader in place of the existing leadership, spokesman Kwesi Ofori said. Read more…

Informations

Buduburam is a refugee camp located 44 kilometers (27 miles) west of Accra, Ghana. Opened by the UNHCR in 1990, the camp is home to more than 12,000 ^[1] refugees from Liberia who fled their country during the First Liberian Civil War (1989–1996) and the Second Liberian Civil War (1999–2003), in addition to refugees from Sierra Leone who also escaped from the ravages of their civil war (1991–2001). The camp is served by Liberian and international NGO groups and volunteer organizations. The UNHCR began pulling out of the camp in April 2007, slowly withdrawing all UNHCR-administered services; June 2010 was the official cessation of refugee status for the refugees in the settlement. BUDUBURAM, located in Ghana, was established in 1990 to accommodate the influx of Liberian refugees who fled to Ghana when Charles Taylor came to power. Initially, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) provided the settlement’s residents with individual aid and relief. In 1997, however, Liberia held elections that the UN judged to be fair enough to allow for safe repatriation conditions. As a result, the UNHCR discontinued refugee assistance to Liberians in Ghana, and the settlement lost much of its funding. During this time, an estimated 3,000 refugees returned to Liberia. Most chose to remain in Ghana, however, and the Buduburam settlement served as the center of their community. Soon after the 1997 elections, the political situation in Liberia worsened, and fresh arrivals of Liberian refugees to Ghana led the UNHCR to return to Buduburam. Although the UNHCR limits its personal aid efforts in the settlement to unaccompanied minors, the elderly, and the disabled, the organization does sponsor infrastructure work within the community, funding projects such as construction and education. Now host to over 42,000 refugees, most of whom are Liberian, the settlement still receives new refugees on a regular basis

~ par Alain Bertho sur 14 février 2011.

Publié dans émeutes, riots