The conduct of the Ghana Police Service in seeking to ban demonstrations is
not just repugnant in the extreme, it is also illegal.
Indeed the police are not clothed with any power to prevent a citizen or a
group of citizen from organizing a demonstration.
In chapter Five, Article 21 (Id) the constitution states inter alia that
“All persons shall have the right to freedom of assembly including the
freedom to take part in processions and demonstrations”.
It must be clear from this provision that the drafters of the 1992
constitution intended to make the right to demonstrate unfetted and they
did so.
The only limitation to the right to freely demonstrate is imposed by the
Public Order Law (Act 491) which was passed by parliament in 1994 but even
that law does not confer any authority on the police to ban demonstrations.
Indeed, under the law only the High Court has the power to prevent
citizens from organizing a demonstration.
The powers of the High Court are not unlimited.
It is clear that the decisions of the police to ban or prevent
demonstrations are completely illegal.
For the purpose of providing clarity, the full text of the Public Order
Law is reproduced below;
PUBLIC ORDER ACT
1994 (ACT 491)
Section 1-Notification to Police of Special of Event.
(1) Any person who desires to hold any special event within
the meaning of this Act in any public place shall notify the police of his
intention not less than 5 days before the date of the special event.
(2) The notification shall be in writing and signed by or on behalf of the
organisers of the special event and shall specify—
(a) the place and hour of the special event,
(b) the nature of the special event;
(c) the time of commencement;
(d) the proposed route and destination, if any; and
(e) proposed time of closure of the event.
(3) The notification shall be submitted to a police officer not below the
rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police or other police officer
responsible for the nearest police station to the location of the proposed
special event.
(4) Where a police officer notified of a special event under subsection (1)
has reasonable grounds to believe that the special event if held may lead
to violence or endanger public defence, public order, public safety, public
health or the running of essential services or violate the rights and
freedoms of other persons, he may request the organisers to postpone the
special event to any other date or to the relocate the special event.
(5) An organiser requested under subsection (4) to postpone or relocate the
holding of a special ever shall within forty-eight hours of the request,
notify the police officer in writing of his willingness to comply.
(6) Where the organisers refuse to comply with the request under subsection
(4) or fail to notify the police officer in accordance with subsection (5),
the police officer may apply to any judge or a chairman of a Tribunal for
an order to prohibit the holding of the special event on the proposed date
or at the proposed location.
(7) The judge or chairman may make such order as he considers to be
reasonably required in the interest of defence, public order, public
safety, public health, the running of essential services or to prevent
violation of the rights and freedoms of other persons.
(2) Section 2-Control of Routes and Crowds.
(1) It shall be the responsibility of every police officer
to take all such steps as are reasonably necessary in any public place—
(a) to assist in the proper conduct of any special event by directing the
routes of such event to prevent obstruction of pedestrian or vehicular
traffic;
(b) to disperse crowds at any special event where he has reasonable grounds
to believe that a breach of the peace is likely to occur or if any breach
of the peace has Occurred or is occurring in order to prevent violence,
restore order and preserve the peace.
(2) The Police officer III charge of an area of a special event may cause
to be closed such streets or parts thereof to pedestrian or vehicular
traffic or both and may cause to be erected such barriers as may be
necessary to preserve public order.
(2) Section 3-Responsibility of Organisers and Other Persons.
(1) Where at any special event any damage is caused to any public
property, the organisers, or any other persons found to have been
responsible for the damage caused shall be liable to pay for the cost of
the damage.
(2) Any person taking part in a special event shall obey the directions of
police officers safeguarding the proper movement of other persons and
vehicles and generally maintain order.
(3) Any person taking part in a special event shall conduct himself in such
a manner as to avoid causing obstruction of traffic, confusion or disorder.
(2) Section 4-Power to Impose Curfew.(1) Where the Minister for the
Interior considers that it is reasonably required in the interest of
defence, public safety, public health, the running of essential services or
the protection of the rights and freedoms of other persons to impose a
curfew in any part of Ghana, he may by executive instrument impose a curfew
in such part only of the country as shall be specified in the instrument.
(2) No instrument shall be issued under subsection (1) to impose a curfew
in the whole of Ghana.
(3) The Minister shall on imposing a curfew notify Parliament as soon as
practicable thereafter.
(4) No curfew shall be imposed for a period exceeding seven days at any one
time under this Act.
(5) Where a curfew is imposed by instrument made under subsection (1) of
this section, no person shall be out of doors between such hours as may be
specified in the instrument except under the authority of a written permit
granted by such person as may be specified in the instrument.
(6) An instrument imposing a curfew may exempt from its operation such
persons or classes of persons as may be specified in it.
(7) An instrument imposing a curfew may authorise any person specified
therein to suspend the operation of the curfew in any specified area or
part.
Section 5-Power to Prohibit Manufacture, Possession of Arms.
(1) Where the Minister for the Interior considers that it is reasonably
required in the interest of defence, public safety, the prevention of
disorder or crime or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of other
persons to do so, he may by executive instrument prohibit any person from
manufacturing, possessing or carrying arms or ammunition within any part of
Ghana specified in the instrument.
(2) An instrument issued under subsection (1) may exclude from its
operation such classes of persons as the Minister may think fit.
(3) An instrument issued under subsection (1) may in lieu of prohibiting
the manufacture, possession or carrying of arms, permit the possession or
carrying of arms subject to such conditions as the Minister may think fit.
(4) An instrument issued under subsection (1) may contain provisions for
requiring persons in possession of arms or ammunition to deposit them with
such person or authority as may be prescribed in the instrument and for
matters connected with it.
(5) Any arms or ammunition deposited with any person or authority in
accordance with an instrument issued under subsection (1) shall be returned
to the person entitled to them on the instrument ceasing to have effect
where there is authority to bold the arms or ammunition.
Section 6-Power of Arrest.
A police officer may arrest without warrant any person whom he suspects on
reasonable grounds of possessing or carrying arms in contravention of an
instrument issued under section 5 of this Act.
Section 7-Power of Search.
(1) A District Magistrate or Chairman of a Community Tribunal may issue a
warrant under his hand authorising any police officer to enter and search
any buildings or premises in which any arms or ammunition are suspected to
be in contravention of an instrument issued under section 5 of this Act.
(2) A warrant issued under this section shall be valid notwithstanding that
the buildings or premises are not specified further therein than being
buildings or premises in or about the specified town or village.
Section 8-Forfeiture of Arms and Ammunition Seized
Any arms or ammunition found in the possession of, or being carried by any
person in contravention of an instrument made under section 5 of this Act
shall be seized and unless it is shown that failure to deposit them in
accordance with the instrument was due to inadvertence or other reasonable
excuse, shall be forfeited to the State.
Section 9-Offence and Penalties
Any person who—
(a) fails to notify the police of any special event contrary to section
(1); or
(b) fails to inform the police of his unwillingness to comply with a
request contrary to section 1 (5); or
(c) takes part in any special event knowing that no notification has been
given to the police; or
(d) acts contrary to a curfew imposed under this Act; or
(e) manufactures, possesses or carries arms or ammunition contrary to a
prohibition imposed under this Act; or
(f) acts contrary to any provision in section 3 commits an offence and is
liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding ¢2 million or imprisonment for
a term not exceeding 1 year or to both.
Section 10-Interpretation
In this Act unless the context otherwise requires—
"ammunition" includes explosives, all ammunitions of war and all materials
for loading firearms;
"arms" includes firearms and offensive weapons of all descriptions,
artillery, apparatus for the discharge of all kinds of projectiles,
explosive or gas-diffusing flame-throwers, bombs, grenades, machine-guns
and rifled small-bore breech-loading weapons of all kinds, and includes
also all parts of any of the foregoing;
"firearms" includes any gun, rifle, machine-gun, cap-gun, flint-lock gun or
pistol, revolver, cannon or other firearms, and any air gun, air pistol,
whether whole or in detached pieces;
"Minister" means the Minister responsible for the Interior;
"offensive weapon" means an article made or adapted for causing injury to a
person or intended by the person having it with him for such use by him;
"organisers" means the person or persons who signed the notification
provided for under section 1(2) or on whose behalf the notification was
signed;
"public place" means a place to which, at the material time, the public
have or are permitted to have access whether on payment or otherwise;
"pecial event" means procession, parade, carnival, street dance celebration
of traditional custom, outdooring of traditional ruler,
demonstration, public meeting and similar event but does not include—
(a) religious meeting;
(b) charitable, social or sporting gathering;
(c) any lawful public entertainment or meeting.
Section 11-Repeal
The Public Order Decree, 1972 (N.R.C.D. 68) and the Public Order
(Amendment) Law, 1983 (P.N.D.C.L. 48) are hereby repealed.
*Editorial *
*SOMEBODY MUST STOP THE POLICE *
The Ghana Police Service has a responsibility to uphold the Constitution
as law enforcement agencies.
It is for this reason that The Insight is deeply worried about the blatant
violations of the law by the Police.
Over the last couple of months, the police demonstrations.
We insist that the police has no authority to ban demonstrations.
The Insight urges all organisations interested in the preservation of the
democratic rights of citizens to protest the illegal actions of the police.
The Police must be told in plain language that it is not above the law and
cannot take the law into its own hands.
Somebody must stop the police from violating the law.
Source:
http://theinsightnewspaper.blogspot.be/2013/10/police-acts-illegally.html
