Petition on sexual molestation of Amina

His Excellency, President John Atta Mills,

The office of the Presidency

Dear Mr. President,

Members of United for Justice-Ghana (UfJ-Ghana), a Facebook pressure group composed of Ghanaians from home and abroad, hereby respectfully petition you, His Excellency John E. A. Mills President of the Republic of Ghana, to ensure that the case involving the sexual molestation of Amina Haruna, the young lady that is alleged to have stolen items at the University of Ghana, by some students of Mensah Sarbah Hall is pursued to its conclusive end.

We are of the opinion that the repugnant incident where Amina was stripped naked, sexually molested, and the incident filmed and posted on the internet by students on March 31, 2011, is symptomatic of the utter disregard for the rule of law and the lack of confidence in the criminal justice system by certain Ghanaians.

Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN) reports that according to the 1997 statistics from the Ghana Police, more than a thousand incidents were recorded as "mob justice" when suspected criminals were attacked and murdered by civilians. This is particularly disturbing given that “66.7% of the suspected thieves were not the real thieves,” reported Samven’s research, 2009.

By this petition, we call on the government of the Republic of Ghana and the Attorney General to institute concrete short and long term measures to

1. Ensure that University of Ghana authorities, in collaboration with the Student Representative Council (SRC) commit to a timeline within which to present to the public an action plan that will proactively address the upsurge of campus crime; curb mob justice; and educate students on the rule of law. In addition, other universities and educational institutions should also be asked to institute similar procedures and policies.

2. Build public trust in the Ghana Police Service by

a. Regularly broadcasting outcomes of criminal prosecution of offenders on radio, television, and the Ghana Police’s website;

b. Increasing police street patrols;

c. Establishing community watch councils (based on Section 3(3) of the Local Government Act, 1993) that can liaise with the Police to increase public safety;

3. Encourage active participation of the Ministry of Information, National Commission on Civic Education, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, District Assemblies, the media, relevant civil society groups, organizations, and international bodies in the education effort and fight against mob justice in Ghana.

It is our hope that the President and the Attorney General will be moved to prompt action by this petition in order to restore civility to University campuses and the nation at large.

Signed by UfJ -Ghana Administrators on behalf of all members:

1. Emmanuel Bidi

2. Dr. Brenya Twumasi

3. James Attoh

4. Amma Baffoe

5. Michael Tontoh

6. Brian L. Aeoah

7. Dzifa Gladstone

8. Donna Akuamoah

9. Yaw Adu-Gyamfi

Cc:

Hon. Martin Amidu, Minister for Attorney General and Justice

Hon. John Tia Akologu, Minister for Information

Hon. Ofosu Ampofo, Minister for Local Government and Rural Development

Mr. Paul Tawiah Quaye, Inspector General of Police (Ghana Police Service)

Acting Commissioner (Commission for Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ)