Anita De Souza placed on US 'No Fly List'?

There were indications Wednesday that the Deputy National Coordinator of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Anita De Souza, had been placed on a No Fly List by the government of the United States of America (USA).

According to information gathered by Graphic Online, De Souza was barred Monday, at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA), from boarding a US-bound Delta Airlines flight on the basis that her name had been put on a list of persons prohibited from entering the US. 

The US No Fly List is a list of people not permitted to board a commercial aircraft for travel in or out of the United States. It currently contains the names of 47,000 people, who have been designated ‘terrorists’ by the US.

According to The Intercept, a larger list  known as Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment (TIDE) contains the names of  one million people, who are either ‘terrorists’, suspected ‘terrorists’ or friends or relatives of  ‘terrorists’.

It’s not clear whether De Souza’s name has indeed been placed on either list nor is it clear why she was prevented from flying to the USA. But some reports have suggested that it relates to an alleged "stand-off” she had with a US citizen, Michelle McGowan.

De Souza is said to have verbally assaulted McGowan, a nurse who was in Ghana for philanthropist purposes.

McGowan is said to have reported De Souza to the US State Department in return.

Mcgowan Thursday confirmed to Accra-based Adom FM that she indeed reported the matter to the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the State Department.

“I was afraid for my life and the FBI requested the audio, they took the audio, they forwarded it to the State Department and they did an investigation,” she said.

According to McGowan, De Souza's name was placed on the No Fly List after the investigation.

“I believe the threats she made towards me are the catalyst for the investigation but the threats alone were not the reasons why she had her visa cancelled,” she added.

When Graphic Online contacted De Souza, who is also the National Democratic Congress’s (NDC) National Women’s Organiser, she promised to “…get back to you at the right time”.

Efforts to ascertain the circumstances of the matter from the US Accra Embassy also proved futile.

The No Fly List was set up in 2003 after the September 11, 2001 Twin Tower attacks.

More to follow.