Immigration vs Football: the Partey refusal saga - George Bernard Shaw writes

As an ardent football fan [Hearts of Oak in Ghana and Arsenal in London], the World Cup always brings me unbridled excitement and joy.

Thus it was with such anxious expectation that I painfully ticked off the days, the hours and the minutes in the countdown to the greatest football bonanza on earth.

With the competition underway, we are all enjoying some great football.

Cape Verde shocked the football world with a spirited performance full of ‘grit and determination’ [as Alan Hansen, the great Liverpool defender now a seasoned football pundit would say], against no lesser team than Spain - did no one tell them about the Spanish Armada? 

Anyway, for me, by far the most exciting team at the Mundial has to be the United States of America team.

The swashbuckling performance in that opening game blew me out of my chair.

If they continue similarly, they could turn out to be the dark horses.

The Ghana team is yet to take to the field, but they are already embroiled in a visa controversy - the refusal of a visa for Thomas Partey to enter Canada because of pending criminal proceedings in the United Kingdom.

This has sparked an important debate that goes far beyond football.

At the heart of the controversy lies one of the oldest and most cherished principles of justice: the presumption of innocence.

The principle that every person is innocent until proven guilty is not merely a technical legal rule. It is a cornerstone of civilisation and one of the great achievements of the rule of law.

It protects individuals against arbitrary state action and ensures that people are judged on evidence tested in a court of law rather than allegations, rumour and public opinion.

The origins of the presumption of innocence can be traced to ancient Roman Law, where the maxim ‘ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui negat’ placed the burden of proof on the accuser and not the accused.

The idea later formed expression in English common law and was eloquently defended by the English jurist William Blackstone, whose famous formulation declared that “it is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer”.

A formulation I wholeheartedly endorse and employ in most of my legal submissions/ final addresses in many of the criminal trials in which I have been involved.

After the horrors of the Second World War, the international community elevated the presumption of innocence into a universal human right.

Article 11 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides that every person charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty in law in a public trial.

The same guarantee appears in Article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,  one of the world’s most important human rights treaties.

Africa has also embraced this principle.

The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights protects the right to a fair trial, while the principles and guidelines on the Right to a Fair Trial and Legal Assistance in Africa adopted by the African Commission affirm that an accused person must be presumed innocent until a competent court establishes guilt.

The rationale behind the principle is obvious. Criminal accusations are easy to make but often difficult to disprove.

If mere allegations were enough to deprive a person of liberty, employment, reputation, or the right to travel, then the justice system would become an instrument of oppression rather than protection. 

The burden, therefore, rests on the prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

It is against this legal and moral background that the reported visa refusal raises difficult questions.

If the only basis for denying Partey entry into Canada is the existence of pending criminal proceedings in another jurisdiction, then such a decision appears to punish an individual before any court has reached a verdict.

It effectively equates accusation to conviction.

Admittedly, Canada, like any sovereign nation, reserves the right to decide who they admit into their country.

It is expected that FIFA will lobby the Canadian Government to allow Partey to participate in the games.

We understand the Government of Ghana is also exploring all avenues [diplomatic, legal, etc.] to resolve the impasse. 

If the World Cup is to continue to hold on to its global esteem and appeal, it is important to provide a level playing field for all participating teams, to field their best players.

We hope the decision is reviewed to allow Partey to showcase his ‘Ashiaman skills’.