West Africa: Liberians Homeless in Ghana Over Demolition of Refugee Camp

---Rights group says

The Liberia Camp ceased to be classified as a refugee shelter in 2012. Since then, the landowners have made several attempts at demolition.

The National Society for Human Rights has asked the Liberian government to take concrete steps to address the situation with Liberians displaced from the Buduburam Refugee Camp in Ghana.

The group addressed a press conference recently at the New Water in the Desert Assembly Apostolic Pentecostal Church International.

The group's president Archbishop Thomas Paul Schirmacker said the situation at the Buduburam Refugee Camp is very terrible.

According to him, Ghanaians are allegedly removing roofs over church buildings where Liberians are seeking refuge.

"What we saw during our visit at the Buduburam Refugee Camp in Ghana last week is very frustrating and it [needs an] urgent attention from the Government of Liberia," Schirmacker is quoted as saying.

For his part, the presiding Bishop of the New Water in the Desert Assembly Apostolic Pentothal Church International Bishop Kortu Brown wants President Joseph Nyumah Koakai's government to take immediate steps aimed at addressing the plights of the Liberian people in the Buduburam Refugee Camp in Ghana.

Last week, under the orders of traditional authorities who own the land, demolition of the camp began. By Monday, a large part of the site where the once bustling Liberia Camp had stood for 34 years was reduced to concrete rubble. Only palm trees remained standing.

Residents picked through the wreckage of their destroyed, once brightly painted houses to salvage belongings as bulldozers plowed on around them.

In the nearby Point Hope Basic School, women, children, and the elderly slept on improvised beds.

The Liberia Camp ceased to be classified as a refugee shelter in 2012. Since then, the landowners have made several attempts at demolition.

Also speaking, the Secretary General of the National Society for the Human Rights Group Matthias Bohning called on Canadian International Footballer Alphonso Davis who was also born at the Buduburam Refugee Camp to help his fellow Liberians.

Alphonso Davies, born on November 2, 2000, is a professional soccer player for Bundesliga Club Bayern Munich and the Canadian national team.

He is widely regarded as one of the best fullbacks in the world and one of the best North American players of all time. His exceptional pace, dribbling ability, and creativity have earned him the nickname "The Roadrunner."

Born in Ghana to Liberian refugee parents, Davies and his family moved to Canada when he was five years old.

He obtained Canadian citizenship in June 2017 and became the youngest player to appear for the Canadian national team later that month.

In a 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup match, he scored two goals, becoming the youngest player to score for the team and the youngest to score at the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Davies has also been named CONCACAF Men's Player of the Year in 2021 and 2022 1 Davies began his career with the Vancouver Whitecaps FC in Major League Soccer (MLS) before joining Bayern Munich in January 2019.

His transfer fee at the time set a record for MLS transfers. Since then, he has become an integral part of Bayern's squad, winning multiple titles including the Bundesliga, the UEFA Champions League, and the DFB-Pokal 1.

His journey from a refugee camp to soccer stardom with Bayern Munich has inspired a new era in Canadian soccer 2.

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