Nigerians, Other West Africans Deported From U.S. Sue Ghana, Trump Govt Over ‘Illegal’ Detention
Eleven West Africans, including Nigerians, who were deported from the United States, have sued the Ghanaian government, alleging unlawful detention after their forced return.
Their lawyer, Oliver-Barker Vormawor, told the BBC that the deportees “had not violated any Ghanaian law, and their detention in a military camp was therefore illegal.”
Vormawor demanded that the Ghanaian government produce them in court and justify why they were being held against their will.
However, the Ghanaian government has yet to comment on the lawsuit.
President John Mahama-led Ghanaian government previously announced plans to accept another 40 deportees under a deportation agreement with Washington.
Opposition MPs have called for the deal’s suspension until parliament ratifies it, insisting that approval is required by Ghanaian law.
Last week, President Mahama confirmed that 14 deportees of West African origin had arrived in Ghana following an agreement reached with the U.S.
He later claimed all had been returned to their home countries, though Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa contradicted him, saying only “most of them” had been repatriated.
Vormawor’s application disputes both accounts, insisting that 11 deportees remain in detention in Ghana.
According to court papers, the 11 were held in a U.S. detention facility before being shackled and flown to Ghana in a military cargo aircraft.
The deportations, observers note, form part of President Donald Trump’s hard-line immigration agenda since taking office in January, which includes a pledge to carry out record-level removals of undocumented migrants.
Ghana’s foreign minister defended the decision to admit the deportees, telling Reuters that it was based on a “humanitarian principle and pan-African empathy.”
He stressed, “This should not be misconstrued as an endorsement of the immigration policies of the Trump administration.”
In addition to the Ghana suit, five of the detainees, three Nigerians and two Gambians, have filed a separate case against the U.S. government.
They argued they were protected by a court order and should not have been deported.
Hafsoh Isiaq is a graduate of Linguistics. An avid writer committed to creative, high-quality research and news reportage. She has considerable experience in writing and reporting across a variety of platforms including print and online.
