Shalimar Abbiusi, the former spokesperson for the New Force Movement, has announced her decision to sue the state of Ghana at the international ECOWAS court for human rights violations and injustice. The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) arrested and subsequently deported Shalimar on a charge of entering the country on false documents in December 2023. The GIS was highly criticised for human rights abuses by Ms. Shalimar’s attorney, Francis-Xavier Sosu.
In a post on her X profile (formerly Twitter) on Friday, March 22, the Belgian said, “I can finally share the news that I will be taking the state of Ghana to international ECOWAS court for the violation of my human rights and the injustice I have suffered. Thanks to @fx_sosu [Francis-Xavier Sosu] and @thenewforcegh for fighting this battle with me.”
She went on to state, “Whatever happened will not break me or silence me, it inspired me to help others and bring attention to these injustices. This bold step I’m taking is not out of pain or revenge but rather out of love for humanity and for the love of people who became victims in similar circumstances.” “My dear people this fight is not just for me but for every single person who has suffered injustice, this fight is for every single person that I encountered in the cells during my unlawful detention and for every human being who doesn’t have a voice to speak up,” said Shalimar Abbiusi. However, the post did not give a specific timeline for the imminent suit.
Background
Shalimar Abbiusi was arrested and slapped with the charge of obtaining a student permit by false declaration in December 2023. Ms. Abbiusi gained public attention when she put out a video claiming to be the spokesperson for the New Force Movement. This declaration came in the wake of the mounting of billboards in parts of the country with a masked image and the inscription New Force.
The 30-year-old was arrested when she was invited by the Head of the National Enforcement Section at the Ghana Immigration Headquarters. The investigations revealed that she first came to Ghana in September 2017, and has since been a regular visitor until 2018, when she became a resident. Sources say she claimed to have been admitted as a student at the Ghana Christian University College.
Checks from the college are said to have, however, revealed that she has never been a student at that institution. Investigators add that the documents she used to secure her residential status were thus forged. She was therefore deported to her native Belgium in a move that sparked accusations of unfair treatment and human rights violations.
