ACCRA, Ghana – The Buduburam Refugee Camp in Ghana is turning into a ghost town as the Ghanaian authorities continue to demolish housing structures.

Buduburam once hosted over 42,000 refugees, most of who fled the Liberian civil war and sought refuge in Ghana. The camp now has a population under 10,000 and rapidly decreasing.

Liberians on the refugee camp now face relocation because of the demolition exercises. Bintu Jaleibah, a mother, residing in the camp, had an experience with the demolition crew. “I don’t even have a place to sleep, nothing to eat at all. I got my son, and we sleep with friends. All my things got damaged when the Ghanaian police came at 5:00 a.m. with the bulldozer.”

Jaleibah was in tears as she explained, “I was sleeping yesterday morning when I heard the bulldozer and people shouting and crying, ‘my things my things.’” It was at this time that Jaleibah realized that the bulldozer was headed to clear the area where her house was located.

She says she was not informed by the officers in charge of the clearing exercises, but she had heard rumors. Jaleibah noted that life in the camp remains unbearable for her and the kid. “Life here on the camp is hard for me now because what I sweat for over the years have been damage just in five minutes time.

Jaleibah, who has lived in the camp for over ten years since she left Liberia in hope of a better life, said she was frustrated. She wants the government of Liberia or other philanthropists to help in bringing them back to Liberia and helping them to create a better life.

When questioned about her experience during the Ebola outbreak, Jaleibah explained how worried she was. She said she “felt all hope was lost, many days [she] laid down in [her] room and cried for help to God for Liberia.”

Jaleibah and others noted that Liberians were stigmatized and discriminated against by Ghanaians and other nationals, because of Ebola. “We were stopped from going certain places and even sitting with Ghanaians was banned on the camp and even in public places.”

Quasie Okobo, a Ghanaian agreed that Liberians were stigmatized during the height of the crisis. “I believe that Liberians are not the virus, but the reports that came about the Ebola scared us. Even up till now, we don’t feel secure with them here,” he continued.