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International Advocacy at the UN
Since 2024, Land Rights Defenders has participated in two sessions of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and submitted formal contributions to two UN 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 addressing the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues — New York
UN Submissions & Statements
All submissions are publicly available on the official UN and OHCHR websites. Click any card to read the full document.
UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII)
24th Session — New York, April 2025
Oral Statement on Indigenous Land Rights & Climate Justice
Land Rights Defenders delivered a formal oral statement at the 24th Session of the UNPFII in New York, calling on member states to enforce Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) principles and protect Indigenous land defenders from persecution. The statement highlighted the Benimasi-Boadi case as a global example of systematic dispossession and urged the Forum to recommend binding protections for land rights defenders operating in post-colonial legal systems.
UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII)
23rd Session — New York, April 2024
Oral Statement on Ancestral Land Dispossession in Ghana
At the 23rd Session of the UNPFII, Land Rights Defenders presented documented evidence of the systematic dispossession of the Benimasi-Boadi community — 1,298.33 acres of sacred ancestral land including the burial grounds of Oheneyere Huahi Yaa Achama Tutuwaa, spouse of Asantehene Osei Tutu I. The statement urged the Forum to recognize the intersection of land rights violations and enforced disappearances in Ghana's Ashanti Region, and called for international monitoring of the case.
UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Working Group on Enforced Disappearances — Written Submission
Submission on Land Defense & Enforced Disappearances in Ghana
A formal written submission to the UN Working Group on Enforced Disappearances documenting patterns of coercion, threats, and state-actor involvement in Ghana's Ashanti Region, specifically in relation to land rights defenders and community leaders. The submission detailed specific incidents of intimidation and disappearances connected to the Benimasi-Boadi land dispute, and called on the Working Group to formally request information from the Government of Ghana.
UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Expert Meeting on International Land Rights Defenders
Submission on Enhancing Capacity for Land Rights Defenders
A written contribution to the OHCHR Expert Meeting on Enhancing the Capacity of International Land Rights Defenders, outlining the specific legal, security, and institutional barriers faced by defenders operating in Ghana and the Global South. The submission recommended concrete measures including international observer status for ongoing land cases, emergency legal aid funds, and diplomatic pressure mechanisms for states that fail to protect defenders.
Media Recognition
The organization's UN advocacy and land rights work has been covered by leading international and national media outlets.
Oct 10, 2025Land Rights Defenders Inc. on Indigenous Wisdom and the Future of Land Rights in Africa
"When communities are separated from their ancestral lands, it can feel like a thread has been pulled from the fabric of their identity and daily life. I say this not just as an observer, but as someone who's seen it unfold firsthand."Read Full Article
Feb 12, 2026Nana Kwesi Osei Bonsu on The Last Guardian of Ashanti and Why Land, Lineage, and Truth Still Matter
"There is a reason this story is emerging now. History, urgency, and personal courage have converged. The land cannot wait, and silence is no longer an option."Read Full Article
Recognized at the Highest Levels of International Governance
Since 2024, Land Rights Defenders has participated in two sessions of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and submitted formal contributions to two UN human rights mechanisms — placing the Benimasi-Boadi community's struggle on the international record and building the evidentiary foundation for the October 2026 High Court trial.
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