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Occupy Julorbi House

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Occupy Julorbi House
Street protest in Accra
Date (2023-September-21) (2023-September-23)September 21–23, 2023
Location
Accra, Ghana

5.58792° N, 0.18262° W
Caused byEconomic hardship, cost of living, abuse of power, corruption, poor infrastructure
Casualties
ArrestedBridget Otoo

Occupy Julorbi House is a Ghanaian 3-day protest which started off as an online protest on the social media platform X formerly Twitter using the hashtag #OccupyJulorbiHouse.[1] The #OccupyJulorBiHouse hashtag is a play on Occupy and Jubilee House which is Ghana's seat of government.[2] Julor Bi is a phrase coined from Ga, the local language spoken by the people of Accra, Ghana's capital. The phrase, composed of the two Ga words "Julor" and "Bi", meaning Child of a Thief is a loose reference to the ruling government, led by the New Patriotic Party, who the people believe have negligently driven the country into a mess.

Background

On Tuesday, September 19, Democracy Hub held a press conference to inform members of the public the necessary measures being adopted to ensure their safety and success of the demonstration. The Occupy Julorbi House was supposed to be a 3-day protest at the seat of government the Jubilee House in Accra organized by Ghanaian civil society organization Democracy Hub.[3][4][5] It started on a peaceful note on (Thursday 21st September, 2023) at the 37 lorry station.

The idea was to plan a demonstration from September 21 to 23 to coincide with Founder's Day—a national holiday honoring Kwame Nkrumah, Ghana's first president and a prominent advocate for African independence and unity. The protestors had initially planned to picket at the Jubilee House but what was intended as a peaceful demonstration took a distressing twist when protestors clashed with Ghana Police, who forcefully attempted to disperse the crowd.[6]

The Police

Police barricade preventing protestors from proceeding to the Jubilee House in Ghana.

The Ghana Police, in an attempt to stop the demonstration from happening, filed an injunction at the Accra High Court on September 19th, 2023[7]. The injunction was filed to prevent protest from occurring in front of the proposed Jubilee House. While the injunction was later withdrawn from the Accra High Court, the protestors were not allowed to protest in the forecourt of the Jubilee House, resulting in the formation of a police barricade in front of the 37 Military Hospital.[8]

Day One

During the first day of the "Occupy Julorbi House" protest on September 21, police used tactics to disrupt the demonstration, leading to the arrest of several protesters. [9]Police sent the detainees to the regional headquarters before splitting them up into about eight police stations dotted across the capital, even as colleague protesters and lawyers worked to secure bail for the illegally detained people. However, all 49 detainees were released on the same day.[1][10]

In the process, other journalist and protesters who massed up significantly at the Accra Regional Command encountered some amount of police violence including shoving, forced detention, seizure of phones and in the case of other physical assaults.

The National Democratic Congress (NDC) criticized the arrest of 'Democracy Hub' protesters on September 21, 2023, in Accra, calling it a violation of their fundamental rights.[11]

In their first two statements on the day, the police said the illegal arrest were justified because protesters were defying a court injunction served on them, which process they denied has been properly served.[9]

The second statement addressed the purported arrest of a BBC journalist and his cameraman[12] which reportage they dismissed as untrue[13].

The touching moment is when a Ghanaian police officer sat on the road and appealed to protesters during the march which has garnered widespread admiration.[14] In the video, he is heard urging demonstrators to make way for the police to carry out their duties. The clip, featuring the lead policeman's interaction with the protesters, has generated over 200 comments, showcasing the emotional impact of the scene.[14]

Notable people

Below are some notable people who participated in the protest:

References

  1. ^ a b Agambila, Dorcas (2023-09-22). "Occupy Julorbi House: Police block protesters from marching to Jubilee House". Pulse Ghana. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  2. ^ "OccupyJulorbiHouse demo: Organisers call for immediate release of all protesters". Citinewsroom – Comprehensive News in Ghana. 2023-09-21. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  3. ^ AfricaNews (2023-09-24). "Ghana: 3-day protests over cost of living crisis, leaders' "moral decay" end". Africanews. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  4. ^ Crabbe, Nathaniel (2023-09-26). ""Much respect": Video of policeman begging OccupyJulorbi protesters warms hearts". Yen.com.gh – Ghana news. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  5. ^ Okyere, Gertrude (2023-09-20). "Police file injunction against occupy 'Julorbi' House demo". Adomonline.com. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  6. ^ "#OccupyJulorbiHouse: Ghanaian Youth Protest for Change as Country's Economy Continues to Worsen". theaccratimes.com. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
  7. ^ Okyere, Gertrude (2023-09-20). "Police file injunction against occupy 'Julorbi' House demo". Adomonline.com. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  8. ^ Agambila, Dorcas (2023-09-22). "Occupy Julorbi House: Police block protesters from marching to Jubilee House". Pulse Ghana. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  9. ^ a b "#OccupyJolorbiHouse: Watch how protesters withstood heavy rains to protest against Akufo-Addo". GhanaWeb. 2023-09-22. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  10. ^ "police arrests protestors of occupy julorbi house". pulse ghana. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  11. ^ "NDC condemns 'shameful' arrest of 'Occupy Julorbi House' protesters". Prime News Ghana. 2023-09-22. Retrieved 2023-09-27.
  12. ^ "#OccupyJulorbiHouse demo: BBC reporter, cameraman arrested". Citinewsroom - Comprehensive News in Ghana. 2023-09-21. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  13. ^ Mensah, K. (2023-09-21). "Police deny arrest of BBC journalist". Asaase Radio. Retrieved 2023-09-29.
  14. ^ a b Crabbe, Nathaniel (2023-09-26). ""Much respect": Video of policeman begging OccupyJulorbi protesters warms hearts". Yen.com.gh - Ghana news. Retrieved 2023-09-28.
  15. ^ Amoah, Geraldine (2023-09-22). ""OccupyJulorbiHouse": Efia Odo, John Dumelo, others spotted at day 2 protest". Yen.com.gh - Ghana news. Retrieved 2023-09-28.


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