Following increasing demands for the 53 arrested anti-Galamsey demonstrators to be released, President Akufo-Addo has refuted claims that the administration is suppressing dissenting views.
In an interview with the French television network France24 on Friday, October 4, the president said that he recognized nonviolent protest as a fundamental component of democracy.
The Attorney General’s office and the Minister of Justice are prosecuting the Democracy Hub Protesters’ case after the police detained and allegedly held some of them longer than was allowed before bringing them before a judge.
Legal experts have criticized the state for its punitive arrest of the demonstrators, citing their opposition to unlawful mining that is damaging forest reserves and water bodies.
Since the protestors are being charged with misdemeanors, some attorneys believe that they should have been granted bond as soon as they were arrested.
“I am not responsible for jailing people in Ghana. The courts in Ghana are independent institutions and they have been so through the Fourth Republic. People misconduct themselves and are brought before the court it is for the court, it is for the court to deal with them, it has nothing to do with the executive, and their behaviour is what landed them in trouble with the Police and the court.
“How can a president whose political career was aided by leading protests have problems with protests, I don’t have problems with protests and nothing is done in Ghana to prevent people from airing their views.”
He called for peaceful demonstrations and urged protesters to work with the relevant authorities to find sustainable solutions to the Galamsey menace.
