Since the 4th Republic was ushered in Ghana in 1993, a series of such unfortunate events have riddled our democracy.
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5 peaceful demonstrations in Ghana that turned violent
Police brutalities during peaceful demonstrations are well documented in different countries around the world.
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Top among this list is the infamous Kumi Preko demonstration by Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo against Value Added Tax (VAT) in 1995 which led to the loss of some lives.
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The demonstration was initially billed as a peaceful protest but quickly became violent when unidentified assailants shot live bullets into the crowd resulting in the deaths of a few protestors.
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In recent times, some other peaceful demonstrations have gone violent just like Kumi Preko.
Here are five (5) other peaceful demonstrations that turned violent.
Let My Vote Count Demonstration: A demonstration by some pressure groups to call for the establishment of a new voters register turned violent on when police fired tear gas into the demonstrators and descended on them with whips and batons.
The demonstrators were made up of members of Let My Vote Count Alliance (LMVCA), Movement for Change (MFC) and Alliance for Accountable Governance (AFAG).
Let My Vote Count
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20 leaders were arrested, with most claiming they were assaulted in some way. These included Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, who was furious with the treatment meted out to him by the police.
KNUST Student Protests: Students of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) protested against the school’s authorities over what they describe as an unfair treatment.
KNUST Demo
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The protest turned violent as students as the administration block was raided by students and the glass doors were broken.
The executive council of the SRC said the demonstration was necessary to end the management’s neglect of students.
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Adenta Footbridge Demo: Some residents of Adenta in the Adentan Municipality in the Greater Accra region, embarked on a demonstration as part of measures to put pressure on government to complete footbridges on the Adenta Madina highway.
The residents who were clouded in red/black attire converged at the main entrance of the WASS campus as planned for the walk and blocked the main highway with burnt tyres.
Adentan riots
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This led to a clash with the police as they tried to disperse the crowd as they tried open the road for the free flow of traffic. Some of the protestors suffered injuries from the teargas and rubber bullets that were fired.
UEW Protests: The University of Education, Winneba was closed down in March 2019 due to a protest by students which turned violent.
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The students were demanding the return of a number of dismissed lecturers and the immediate dismissal of the Vice Chancellor, Rev. Prof. Afful-Broni.
UEW Demo
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The police fired a number of warning shots in an attempt to disperse the demonstrating students who have caused damage to property on campus. The Junior Common Room, the windscreen of the Students Representative Council bus and a notice board have all been damaged.
Law Students Demo: A peaceful protest by law students across Ghana in Accra turned violent as police officers opened water canons and tear gas on them.
The incident also led to the arrest of the Students Representative Council (SRC) President of the Ghana School of Law, Jonathan Alua and other 9 students.
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Law students demonstrations
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The demonstration, seeking reforms to legal education in Ghana, started peacefully at the main campus of the Ghana School of Law.
But on their last-ditch effort to present their petition to the president at the Jubilee House was met with resistance from police officers, who claimed the demonstrating students had no permission to enter the presidency.
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