Book on 1986 Treason Trial launched in Accra
Accra (Greater Accra) 09 January 2002 - A Book on the Treason Trials of 1986 authored by Mr George Kwaku Agyekum, former Chairman of the Public Tribunals was on Tuesday launched in Accra.
Mr Ben Ephson, Editor of the Dispatch launched the book, which highlighted the torture, revolutionary justice, judgement proceedings and other miscellaneous facts of the trials.
Mr Ephson said the launching of the book was opportune as it coincided with the passage of the National Reconciliation Bill by Parliament, which would offer Ghanaians an opportunity to know what actually happened at various stages of "our political history".
He said the book was not mainly a manual on torture, but recorded various forms of torture on the victims and witnesses.
He said during and after the trials, there were about 5,000 letters petitioning the PNDC on the tortures meted out to the victims and it was for this reason that the book sought to show how the law was represented and to clear the name of the author over public opinion of the proceedings.
Mr Agyekum said he had received series of letters from human rights groups since there were a lot of controversies over the trials such as confession statements, which were used as part of the records.
He said he was interested in the legal aspect of the trials and the book aimed at presenting the records of the trials to make for easy access to those records and for informed opinion as to whether what took place in 1986 was right or wrong.
"There were many mysteries about the Public Tribunals especially about those who worked with them and the book is to allow the public to have an insight of the proceedings and what took place at the time".
Mr Agyekum, in the preface, said in view of the reports on the trial, and the circumstances surrounding the cases, especially on allegations of torture and refusal of the trial tribunal to allow the accused to call witnesses, he found it fit to let the public have the benefit of the full proceedings.
He said the full proceedings of the trials were therefore being published to enable the public to access the records. However, it was not meant to justify the trial other than to state the evidence to enable legal experts and other human rights activists to put the trials on an objective scrutiny and assessment.
Mr Harruna Atta, Editor of the Accra Daily Mail, who chaired the function, said the issues raised in the book highlighted some trends in the society.
He said Mr Agyekum was privileged to try such major cases as the murder of the judges and the suspects of attempted coups in the early times of the revolution.
The book also highlighted the treatment of the victims, the legal arguments that went into the trials, describing it as the beginning of a landmark in the trial of cases in the country since the author was mindful of the controversies that the book would generate. The book will be auctioned next month.
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