International Advocacy
at the United Nations
Since 2024, Land Rights Defenders has participated in three sessions of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and submitted formal contributions to two OHCHR human rights mechanisms — placing the Benimasi-Boadi community's struggle on the international record.
Speaking for Communities Who Cannot Speak for Themselves
The UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) is the highest-level United Nations body dedicated to Indigenous peoples' rights. Gaining accreditation and delivering oral statements at the Forum places the Benimasi-Boadi community's case before member states, UN agencies, and international civil society.
In parallel, written submissions to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) create a formal international record of land rights violations and enforced disappearances in Ghana's Ashanti Region — a record that can be cited in diplomatic communications, legal proceedings, and future UN reviews of Ghana's human rights obligations.
Land Rights Defenders supports and funds the Benimasi-Boadi Indigenous community in bringing their case to the world's attention. The UN advocacy work runs in parallel with the High Court proceedings in Kumasi, building international pressure and evidentiary support ahead of the October 2026 trial.
Community
Benimasi-Boadi, Ashanti Region, Ghana
UN Bodies Engaged
UNPFII & OHCHR
Legal Framework
UNDRIP Arts. 10, 25, 26 & 28
Active Since
2023
UNPFII 24th Session — New York, April 2025
Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu, representing the Huahi Achama Tutuwaa Royal Family — Indigenous People of Benimasi-Boadi, Ghana — delivers an oral statement at the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues 24th Session. He details the allodial title granted by King Osei Tutu I to Oheneyere Tutuwaa, the landmark legal victory under Ghana's Land Act 2020, ongoing exploitation attempts by the Kumasi Traditional Council, and calls on the Forum to recognise the struggles of Indigenous peoples in the Global South.
Watch full video on dedicated pageLegal Basis
The submissions invoke the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), specifically Articles 10, 25, 26, and 28 — affirming the right to ancestral lands, sacred sites, and Free, Prior and Informed Consent.
UN Submissions & Statements
Read the available official UN and OHCHR records, watch oral statements, and access the 2026 statement hosted by Land Rights Defenders.
Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR)
Expert Meeting on Enhancing Capacity Building for Local Government to Involve Human Rights in All Aspects of Their Work
Strengthening Local Government Capacity to Uphold Indigenous Land Rights
The statement calls for strengthened capacity-building of Ghana's local and regional governments — through training, legal reform, and partnerships — to effectively uphold human rights, especially Indigenous land rights, in the face of limited resources and weak enforcement.
UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII)
23rd Session — New York, April 2024
Watch Video
Watch on dedicated pageOral Statement on Ancestral Land Dispossession & Systemic Persecution in Ghana
Oral statement by Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu appealing to the United Nations for protection against the alleged illegal seizure of his Indigenous community's 16th-century ancestral lands in Ghana. He detailed a pattern of systemic harassment, including a direct threat from Otumfuo Osei Tutu II and an account of being tortured for six days in police custody for his activism. The address concluded by calling for international support to hold traditional councils accountable and to uphold the Land Act of 2020 against judicial interference.
UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances
Thematic Report — Enforced Disappearances in the Context of Land Defense
Submission on Enforced Disappearances & Land Rights Defenders in Ghana
The submission documents how Indigenous land defenders in Ghana face enforced disappearances, threats, torture, and criminalization due to land disputes driven by powerful economic interests, corruption, and weak enforcement, with the involvement of both state and non-state actors. A case study from the Ashanti Region shows how a land rights defender disappeared after issuing an official land ownership report, forcing community leaders into exile and leaving Indigenous communities traumatized, silenced, and vulnerable to continued land dispossession and environmental harm.
UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII)
24th Session — New York, April 2025
Statement on Allodial Title, UNDRIP Implementation & Indigenous Land Defenders
The statement affirms the Indigenous land rights of the Huahi Achama Tutuwaa Royal Family of Benimasi-Boadi-Goaso, Ghana, based on an allodial title personally granted by King Osei Tutu I and distinct from communal stool lands. It describes how Land Rights Defenders emerged to resist attempts by the Kumasi Traditional Council to exploit these ancestral lands, despite limited global attention to Indigenous struggles in the Global South. The statement notes that Ghanaian courts have unequivocally affirmed the family's lawful ownership, consistent with the Land Act of 2020, and urges the UN to support genuine implementation of UNDRIP and Indigenous land defenders.
UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII)
25th Session — New York, April 22, 2026 · Agenda Item 5(d)
Statement on CEDAW GR No. 39, Gender-Based Land Dispossession & the Benimasi-Boadi Heritage Site
Delivered by Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu at the 25th Session of the UNPFII under Agenda Item 5(d), this statement invokes CEDAW General Recommendation No. 39 (2022) to document the gendered dimensions of the Benimasi-Boadi land dispossession — centred on the sacred burial grounds and cultural heritage site of Oheneyere Huahi Yaa Achama Tutuwaa, spouse of Asantehene Osei Tutu I. The statement calls on the Forum to urge Ghana to enforce its own courts' judgements, halt KNUST's ongoing encroachment and third-party land sales, and protect the heritage site ahead of the October 2026 High Court trial.
Moments from the Forum
Documented moments from Land Rights Defenders' participation at the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York.
UNPFII — UN Headquarters, New York
Inside the Forum: Indigenous Delegates from Around the World
The plenary hall of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues at UN Headquarters in New York. Delegates from indigenous communities across the globe — many in traditional dress — gather to present statements, evidence, and demands to member states. The 'INDIGENOUS PE[OPLE]S ORGANIZATION' nameplate is visible at the front table.
The Benimasi-Boadi Community's Struggle Is on the UN Record
Since 2023, Land Rights Defenders has engaged with the United Nations across five formal submissions — participating in three sessions of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (2024, 2025, and 2026) and submitting formal contributions to two OHCHR human rights mechanisms. The international community is watching — and the October 2026 High Court trial in Kumasi will determine the future of 1,298.33 acres of sacred ancestral land.
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