the role of john mensah sarbah in the arps

endobj Magnus Sampson, Gold Coast Men of Affairs, London, 1937. Some of the methods used by the ARPS included campaigns in local newspapers, namely the Gold Coast Methodist Times and the Gold Coast Aborigines in the late nineteenth century and the Gold Coast Nation and the Gold Coast Leader during the first two decades of the twentieth century. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. In addition to his political achievements, Sarbah wrote two books about the Fante and played an important role in establishing public schools in the colony. This reform, too, has now been adopted. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. The Gold Coast Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (ARPS) was formed in 1897 in the historic city of Cape Coast, a hub of intellectual and political activism in Ghana. << Had the Lands Bill been passed, it would have allowed the colonial government to take over so-called waste or public lands in the entire British West Africa. The leader of the Ahanta tribe in the Western Region and a Ghanaian king Badu Bonsu II was executed in 1838 and the head cut off by the Dutch. 50 0 obj John Mensah Sarbah was the first lawyer of the Gold Coast that helped in the documentation of the customary laws of the Gold Coast and present day Ghana. The Gold Coast When Edward IV Was King, Journal of the African Society, Vol. John Mensah Sarbah was called to the English Bar in 1887. Hutchison's Pen Pictures of Modern Africans and African Celebrities1", "The Aborigines Society, Kwame Nkrumah and the 1945 Pan-African Congress", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gold_Coast_Aborigines%27_Rights_Protection_Society&oldid=1077681957, 1890s establishments in Gold Coast (British colony), Articles with unsourced statements from June 2012, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Asante, S. K. B. It empowered chiefs to pass local bylaws for forest preservation. His successors in this field were J. E. Casely Hayford, andDr. J. He therefore helped J. P. Brown, J. W. de Graft Johnson, and others, to form the Aborigines Rights Protection Society (ARPS) to watch over the interests of the African population. John Mensah Sarbah was a good legislator, He was nominated as a member of the Legislative Council by the governor, Sir Mathew Nathan (term of office, 1900- 1904), in 1901 and sat except for a short break, as a member until his death. some cases thereon decided in the Law Courts by John Mensah Sarbah | Sep 21, 2020 5 Hardcover $1844 They sent Sarbah to argue against its passage in the Legislative Council. As a legislator he was interested in law reform, and tried his best to prevent the passage of laws inimical to the interests of his countrymen. He was the first African barrister from the then Gold Coast. Born in the Gold Coast in 1864, John Mensah Sarbah qualified as a barrister in London and later became a leading critic of British colonial rule, especially in connection with land ownership. For example, society never developed in the adjoining Eastern Province. Methodist 65, 76. John Mensah Sarbah (Author of Fanti customary laws, a brief introduction to the principles of the native laws and customs of the Fanti and Akan districts of the Gold Coast, with a . The mission of ARPS initially was to protect the traditional land tenure practices of the Indigenous Gold Coast peoples and more concretely to ensu. For example, in 1906, following the campaigns against the Town Councils Ordinance championed by the ARPS, Cape Coast market women unleashed a large-scale, well-organized protest against the ordinance when Governor John Rodger visited Cape Coast to open an agricultural show. He deduced that his business was a key driver for his journey to better the lots of his people and the Methodist church. /Names << /Dests 12 0 R>> When for some financial reasons, the Wesleyan Mission closed down the Cape Coast Wesleyan School, he and some other nationalists revived it, financed it, and renamed it the Collegiate School. The idea of forming the society had been incubated as early as 1895 but was shelved 1 year ago ago At the age of 23, he returned to the Gold Coast to set up a legal practice. C.F. Crises and Transitions in African Historiography (1950-1990), Essential History Primary 5 Teacher's Guide, [Ghanabib 1819 1979 Prepared 23/11/2011] [Ghanabib 1980 1999 Prepared 30/12/2011] [Ghanabib 2000 2005 Prepared 03/03, The Politics of Educational Borrowing: Reopening the Case of Achimota in British Ghana Author(S): Gita SteinerKhamsi and Hubert O, Migration from Historic Mission Churches to Pentecostal Churches in Ghana by REV, Singapore in Global History Singaporederek Heng Is Assistant Professor at the History in Singapore in Department, Ohio State University, Nationalism in Question: a Study of Key Categories in Ghanaian History 1863-1965, Colonialism, Maritime Culture and Conflict in Southern Gold Coast, 18601932, KWAME NKRUMAHS CONTRIBUTION to PAN-AFRICANISM an Afrocentric Analysis D.Zizwe Poe, Resource Flows and Technology Adoption in Tamale, Ghana: Implications for Urban and Peri-Urban Vegetable Growers. The passage of the bill, however, made him very unpopular, especially since subsequently he received the British decoration of the CMG (Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St. George), an honor some thought that he had sought, though he denied it. /Type /Page The ARPS used the money to establish a press, which published The Gold Coast Nation (founded 1912) and The Gold Coast Times (founded 1923). B. Danquah. /Contents 25 0 R /N 3 [2][3], In 1897, along with J. W. de Graft-Johnson, J. W. Sey, J. P. Brown and J. E. Casely Hayford, Mensah Sarbah co-founded the Aborigines' Rights Protection Society, which became the main political organisation that led organised and sustained opposition against the colonial government, laying the foundation for Ghanaian independence. He noted that the late lawyer did five hundred and sixty mineral cases in Accra, Secondi in the early 1990s. If the content contained herein violates any of your rights, including those of copyright, and/or violates any the above mentioned factors, you are requested to immediately notify us using via the following email address operanews-external(at)opera.com and/or report the article using the available reporting functionality built into our Platform, Gold Coast Aborigines' Rights Protection Society. News ), Opera News is a free to use platform and the views and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not represent, reflect or express the views of Opera News. Azu Crabbe, John Mensah Sarbah: His Life and Works, Accra, 1971. The society also had a secretary and a treasurer. 0000034351 00000 n He compiled and published Fanti Law Reports in 1904, but this was incomplete because he was refused permission to take any more notes from court records. At the age of 23, he returned to the Gold Coast to set up a legal practice. 0000021045 00000 n Over 50 years after his death, the University of Ghana, in 1963, named Mensah Sarbah Hall after him for his services to education. John Mensah Sarbah (June 3, 1864-November 27, 1910), patriot and statesman, was one of the most outstanding nationalists of the Gold Coast at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of. John Mensah Sarbah (June 3, 1864-November 27, 1910), patriot and statesman, was one of the most outstanding nationalists of the Gold Coast at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. 0000015327 00000 n W. T. Balmer. assumptions of the British imperial regime, he felt that, PS opposed the Lands Bill of 1897, which threatened, Building on Custom: Land Tenure Policy and Economic Development in Ghana, Exhuming and Highlighting the Nearly Forgotten Gold Coast Intelligentsia: the Life and Times of Prince Kwamin Atta Amonoo V, The Rise of British Jurisdiction in Ghana Jonqil Van, Primary 5 History of Ghana Facilitator's Guide, Pan-African History: Political Figures from Africa and The, AFRICAN COASTAL ELITE ARCHITECTURE: CULTURAL AUTHENTIFICATION DURING the COLONIAL PERIOD in ANOMABO, GHANA By, The Case of John Mensah Sarbah and the Reconstruction of Gold Coast History, The Commission Shall Advise the President on Development Planning Policy and Strategy, Decolonising African History. Opera News furthermore does not condone the use of our platform for the purposes encouraging/endorsing hate speech, violation of human rights and/or utterances of a defamatory nature. He founded a scholarship scheme called the Dutton Sarbah Scholarship at Mfantsipim School and helped pay the salaries of the staff when the school encountered financial difficulties.[9]. The delegation was successful because the Colonial Office later asked the colonial government to abandon the Lands Bill and the hut tax. Publications such as Gold Coast Nation and Gold Coast Times came from this organization. [6], The formation of the Gold Coast ARPS came at a period during the late 19th century in which the educated Gold Coast elite were systematically barred from high-ranking positions in the colonial government. He made a lasting mark on national life in politics, education, and law. The ARPS remained the voice of colonized Africans until its demise in the 1930s. Telling the business story of the late lawyer, senior law partner, Kojo Bentsil Enchil said the late Sarbah was the greatest aggregate of an achiever in the Gold Coast and in present day Ghana in the lawyer profession. Upon returning from a visit to Europe in 1903 together with William Edward Sam, he and Sam promoted an enterprise called the Fanti Public Schools Limited. Concerning the competence and compellability of a spouse as a witness in a criminal trial in which the other spouse was the accused, he proposed that no distinction should-be made between the spouse in Christian marriage and the spouse in a customary marriage (The distinction, as he-had suggested, was to be abolished in 1960). L. H. Ofosu-Appiah. He became the first native-born Ghanaian to accomplish the feat. Early Life 0000029808 00000 n Sign up here to receive the quarterly Journal of African Christian Biography and DACB News (FREE). Many were those who knew the late John Mensah Sarbah as an illustrious lawyer, politician and educationist in the days of the defunct Gold Coast and modern day Ghana. This is clear evidence to the effect that aside his legal profession, he had massive interest in education, politics, business and Agriculture. Opera News does not consent to nor does it condone the posting of any content that violates the rights (including the copyrights) of any third party, nor content that may malign, inter alia, any religion, ethnic group, organization, gender, company, or individual. [1][2] Its delegates were active in international organizations and at the 1945 Pan-African Congress, it gained support from Kwame Nkrumah, who later became the main leader of the independence movement. Amazon.com: John Mensah Sarbah: Books 10 results RESULTS Fanti customary laws, a brief introduction to the principles of the native laws and customs of the Fanti and Akan districts of the Gold Coast, with a . After qualifying in his profession, Sarbah returned to the Gold Coast and founded his own private legal practice. Atspo Reports, Statistics, And Goal Scorers From Betpawa Premier League Match Week 12. 0000014972 00000 n B. Danquah. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Sarbah returned the guinea fee which the ARPS gave him for his work, as he regarded it as an honour to serve his country. His successors in this field were J. E. Casely Hayford, and Dr. J. The Oil Palm and Its Products, Journal of the African Society, London, 1909. In 1892 his father died, arid he also took over his fattiers business. >> It cannot be said that the late lawyer did not engaged in any business because he was at a point prosecuted for invasion of Customs duties which had to be quashed by the then Chief Justice. /MediaBox [0.0000 0.0000 595.2756 841.8898] As a legislator he was interested in law reform, and tried his best to prevent the passage of laws inimical to the interests of his countrymen. Although he accepted the basic assumptions of the British imperial regime, he felt that some of the evils of the crown colony system should be checked. Members of the hall are known as Vikings as a reference to him who is a true Viking for his country. /Info 21 0 R "[5], An analysis of the impact of the Gold Coast ARPS must typically be constrained to the society's impact on local politics in the Gold Coast region. /Length 296 << /Parent 20 0 R 0000000908 00000 n Mr. Henry Kwadwo Amoako is a Ghanaian Social Scientist, Researcher and Acclaimed Historian for over two decades. The ARPS remained the voice of colonized Africans until its demise in the 1930s. Above all, it served as a precursor to revolutionary nationalism not only in the Gold Coast but in the entire West African region in the 1930s. 0000021313 00000 n John Mensah Sarbah was interested in court reforms, and tried to obtain better protection for accused persons during trials, especially in cases in whichcolonial districtcommissioners were biased against certain Africans. The Forest Bill can be traced to the Native Jurisdiction Ordinance of 1883. %%EOF Please accept by clicking on the 'Accept' button on your screen. More importantly, the ARPS demanded radical constitutional reforms to enable the African intelligentsia to participate in the administration of the colony. When, for financial reasons, the Wesleyan Mission closed down the Cape Coast Wesleyan School, he and some other nationalists revived it, financed it, and renamed it the Collegiate School. In 1901 he was appointed to the Legislative Council. Sarbah returned the 400-guinea fee which the ARPS gave him because he felt that it was an honor to serve his country. 1864-1910 Sarbah was a good legislator. John Mensah Sarbah (June 3, 1864-November 27, 1910), patriot and statesman, was one of the most outstanding nationalists of the Required fields are marked *. /Length 12414 W. T. Balmer. He was educated at the Cape Coast Wesleyan School, and at Taunton School Devon, England. This was vigorously implemented in 1907 with the passing of the Timber Protection Ordinance which sought to prevent the cutting of saplings. John Mensah Sarbah was born on Friday, 3 June 1864, in Anomabu, in the Fante Confederacy in the Gold Coast. He played a major role in the Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (ARPS), founded to oppose the 1896 Crown Lands Bill and the 1897 Lands Bill that . 25 0 obj 22 29 Sarbah also took an interest in the advancement of secondary education in Ghana and was instrumental in the development of his alma mater, Mfantsipim. particularly, john mensah sarbah, a key member of the gold coast arps and a lawyer, helped to advocate against the introduction of the lands bill of 1897 by arguing that it was no different from a previous, unsuccessful bill in 1894; that its introduction would break family and society ties, and that the land was valuable to indigenous peoples He waborn at Cape Coast in 1864and was the eldest son of John Sarbaha merh nd o SaahHe When the Gold Coast Native Jurisdiction Ordinance (1883) was being amended in 1910, Section 29 caused a stir among the people because they felt it would empower the governor to usurp the rights of the people in the destooling of chiefs. His father sent him to England when he was sixteen to continue his education. In understanding the critiques of the Gold Coast ARPS nationalists aims, it is important to note that much of the skepticism about the true intentions of the members of the Gold Coast ARPS came from British colonial administrators who were dismissive of the attempts of the Gold Coast ARPS to oppose the Lands Bill of 1897. Sarbah House, at Mfantsipim, is named for him. Sarbah-Picot House at Mfantsipim School is named after him. He was also the first African from the Gold Coast to be called to the Bar. [2][7][8], In 1904 he married Marion Wood from Accra and they had three children. endobj . [4][5], Mensah Sarbah was appointed a member of the Legislative Council in 1901,[6] and was re-appointed in 1906. XIV, No. When Governor Sir William Maxwell (term of office 1895-97) refused to withdraw the bill, Sarbah advised the ARPS to send a delegation to England to petition against its . Any/all written content and images displayed are provided by the blogger/author, appear herein as submitted by the blogger/author and are unedited by Opera News. He also proposed that native tribunals should be given a definite and well-defined place in the judicial structure. Some other sources (including Magnus Sampson, 1969) give 6 November 1910 as the date of Mensah Sarbahs death. New York: Reference Publications Inc., 1977. He had married Marian Wood of Accra in 1904, and they had three children. However, the Gold Coast ARPS was interested not only in the protection of the rights of the native peoples in the Gold Coast but also with the larger global struggles of the African diaspora, including the United States, Europe and the West Indies. He entered Lincolns Inn in London in 1884 to study law, and qualified as a barrister in 1887, being the first African from the Gold Coast to gain this qualification. %PDF-1.3 In 1892 his father died, and he also took over his fathers business. Furthermore, some of its members joined in the formation of the United Gold Coast Convention (UGCC) which eventually lead to the independence of Ghana. He touted the late lawyer as one who represented the largest number of three thousand cases at the Cape Coast Supreme court in his days. Over 50 years after his death, the University of Ghana, in 1963, named Mensah Sarbah Hall after him for his services to education. 2021 Happy FM Ghana - Developed byHappy Ghana. ". /Resources << Upon returning from a visit to Europe in 1903 together with William Edward Sam, John Mensah Sarbah and Sam promoted an enterprise called the Fanti Public Schools Limited. Apart from various petitions issued by the ARPS, the society also sent delegations to meet with the colonial government. Although the formation of the ARPS was due to the cumulative effects of colonial rule in the late nineteenth century, the immediate reason for its formation was the Lands Bill. /Linearized 1 0000020963 00000 n Any/all written content and images displayed are provided by the blogger/author, appear herein as submitted by the blogger/author and are unedited by Opera News. John Mensah Sarbah returned the 400-guinea fee which the ARPS gave him because he felt that it was an honor to serve his country. In 1897 he worked with JE Casely Hayford, JP Brown, JW de Graft Johnson, and others to form the Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (ARPS). Nation and Gold Coast and founded his own private legal practice example, society never in... Driver for his journey to better the lots of his people and the Methodist church Week 12 Eastern Province quarterly... Which sought to prevent the cutting of saplings Accra and they had three children category only includes cookies ensures! 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Returned to the Gold Coast Times came from this organization ], in the Gold Coast Men of,... Scorers from Betpawa Premier League Match Week 12 the Methodist church lasting mark on national Life in politics education... Iv was King, Journal of African Christian Biography and DACB News ( FREE ) give 6 1910! And its Products, Journal of the Indigenous Gold Coast and founded his own private legal practice own legal... Judicial structure the administration of the African intelligentsia to participate in the of.