International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is celebrated on March 21 every year. This year’s theme is: “racial profiling and incitement to hatred, including in the context of migration”.
In Sharpeville, Transvaal in Apartheid South Africa, on March 21, 1960 police killed sixty nine people after they opened fire on over five thousand black South Africans who were demonstrating in front of a police station against the apartheid pass laws. Later in 1966, the United Nations General Assembly called on all nations to eliminate all forms of racial discrimination – thus the celebration.
According to the UN Human Rights Council, racial and ethnic profiling is: “reliance by law enforcement, security and border control personnel on race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin as a basis for subjecting persons to detailed searches, identity checks and investigations, or for determining whether an individual is engaged in criminal activity”.
Globally, people are subjected to all forms of racial discrimination – South Africa was in the news for xenophobic attacks.
In Ghana, Fulanis are one group of people who are racially profiled at police barriers and border posts due to the stereotype that all Fulanis are criminals and foreigners. If, Fulanis have been involved in one criminal act or the other, does it mean that all Fulanis have been involved in crime? There’s no justification for any form of racial or ethnic profiling against them.
On Wednesday, March 15 2017, I witnessed a typical situation as I travelled from Tatale to Tamale. Some Fulanis – a man and his son were also passengers aboard the vehicle. Throughout the journey from Tatale to Yendi the driver took either GHS 10.00 or GHS 15.00 from the Fulanis. Sometimes, the driver mounted pressure. This he gave to the policemen.
Upon arrival at a police barrier before we got to Yendi town, this happened and a friend of mine and I asked the driver why he had taken money from the Fulanis all these while? Evasively, he got off the vehicle and walked to the policeman to report us. The policeman walked angrily towards the vehicle and demanded that those who were questioning their “authority” get off the bus and meet them.
After some resistance, another police officer walked to the vehicle and calmly asked that all passengers get off the vehicle. The police officer then asked us to come along with the Fulanis for the explanation we had sought earlier. In his explanation, the officer gave the impression that, the Fulanis were migrants, and probably didn’t have money to be able to get the right documents and as such, detaining them wouldn’t be beneficial – so collecting the money was more beneficial.
After that incident, no money was taken from the Fulanis at any police barrier from Yendi to Tamale. The action of the driver and the police officers right from Tatale was based on ethnic stereotype. The notion is Fulanis are usually criminals and foreigners and as such, they have to be discriminated against at the least opportunity.
Stereotyping people leads to all forms of discrimination. Racial Discrimination is against human rights of all people – Fulanis inclusive. There may be bad Fulanis but, as much as possible stereotyping them isn’t the answer to the many crimes reported about their alleged involvement.
This situation is widespread at police barriers and borders across the length and breadth of the country; however, should human rights abuse continue arbitrarily on the basis that these are known facts, yet we keep ourselves aloof from the situation? We’ve aided and abetted in this human rights abuse.
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(Via: CitiFM Online Ghana)