Last Day at HRAC

After 5 weeks, I’ve reached my final day with HRAC and the final day of my stay in Accra, generously supported by the Commonwealth in England Barristers’ Association (see post ‘Opportunities for Young Lawyers’ for more information). HRAC gave me a great send off. Although the working day normally finishes at 4pm, the team all stayed on for another hour or so for a farewell gathering, which included mouthwatering but very spicy kebabs for all to enjoy, a few bottles of lager, and one of the biggest cakes I’ve ever seen. I was also given a farewell gift: a red and white HRAC t-shirt. I hope there’s space for it in my backpack, considering all the clothes I’ve had made in the last five weeks (see post ‘Fabric  Shopping’ for more on this)!

I thought this would be a good opportunity to do a brief recap of everything (work-related) I’ve managed to cram into the past month. Most of what I have done has been detailed at length in previous blog posts, but not everything.

Drafting a paper on LGBT rights in Ghana

This was my first piece of work – totalling nearly 40 pages in length – and drawing extensively on work I have previously done with the Human Dignity Trust and the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies. 

The paper outlines the international, regional and domestic legal framework in respect of the criminalisation of homosexuality in Ghana. It also addresses recent anti-LGBT laws passed in Uganda and Nigeria and argues why it would be folly for Ghana to follow suit, taking into account its international obligations and rights protected by its own constitution.  The paper will be used by HRAC as an advocacy tool and will be submitted to the Ministry of Gender.

Research and proposals on disability rights in Ghana

I prepared a briefing paper on the socioeconomic rights of disabled people in Ghana, written for and submitted to the US Embassy. Following submission, the Embassy asked HRAC to put together an expression of interest for project funding. I had to quickly plan and cost a project and put together that proposal. I have recently discovered that the proposal was accepted by the Embassy and will be implemented in 2015.

Human Rights Clinic

HRAC runs a legal advice clinic, providing assistance to the general public. I shadowed and took notes for a few advice sessions. One case concerned an employment matter, and another concerned a matrimonial dispute. The latter I found particularly interesting and more information can be found in my post ‘Family Law in Ghana’.

Kewunor Dispute

I prepared a report for the Human Rights Clinic after having met with a client in Ada Foah who, along with 1500 others, was at risk of being forcibly evicted from his home and business in Kewunor. I visited the village and met with local residents. The paper traces the complex land history and is now with a local human rights lawyer, who has agreed to take up the case.

The Constitutional Review

In this paper – also totalling close to 40 pages – I considered the recommendations of the Constitutional Review Commission and their compatibility of the proposed new Constitution with Ghana’s international obligations. As the CRC’s recommendations are numerous, I only focussed on a few discrete areas, with other colleagues focussing in on other areas. My areas of interest included:

• the CRC’s recommendations regarding citizenship;
• the CRC’s recommendations regarding the death penalty and the punishment of life without parole;
• the CRC’s recommendations regarding pre-charge and pre-trail detention;
• the CRC’s recommendations regarding the arrest and detention of disabled people;
• the CRC’s  recommendations regarding discrimination against LGBT people;
• the CRC’s recommendations regarding fair trial rights;
• the CRC’s recommendations regarding children in court – including best practice in determining the age of juveniles, and obtaining children’s best evidence in court; and the CRC’s recommendations regarding trial time limits.

Court Visits

As well as the above, I also attended court on a few occasions. Twice I attended the Gender Based Violence Court to provide support to the mother of the complainant and to take a noting brief in a case in which HRAC was intervening. The case concerned the alleged rape of a young girl, and my observations are detailed in previous posts.

I also arranged a visit to the Supreme Court complex independently of my time with HRAC. This is also detailed in a previous post.

In retrospect, that was a busy month indeed!