Parliament on Wednesday, February 28, passed the “Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2021.”
“Honourable Members, the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2021 has been read for the third time and passed,” Mr Alban Bagbin, the Speaker of Parliament announced this on the Floor of the House.
The object of the Act is to provide for proper human sexual rights and Ghanaian Family Values proscribe lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ+) and its related activities.
The Bill proscribes LGBT activities and criminalises its promotion, advocacy and funding.
Persons caught in the act would be subjected to six-month to three-year jail term with promoters and sponsors of the act bearing a three to five-year jail term.
The Bill would now require Presidential assent to come into force.
Ahead of the passage, sponsors of the Bill filed a motion for further consideration of the Bill.
Mr Samuel Nartey George, the lead sponsor proposed that clauses 10 and 11 of the anti-LGBT which dealt with editorial policies of media firms be subjected to article 12 of the 1992 constitution which provides for the freedom of the media.
The amendments were approved by the House as part of the Bill.
Mr Alexander Afenyo-Markin, the Majority Leader, on his part also filed a motion for Clause 12 of the Bill which deals with the funding of LGBT activities to be subjected to the constitution but that was nullified by the House.
The passage of the Bill by Parliament comes a day after the Board Chair of the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), Professor Audrey Gadzekpo, called on President Akufo-Addo to reject the Bill which was against the wishes of majority of the Ghanaian people.
Prof. Gadzekpo argued that “the bill undermines fundamental human rights protected by the Constitution, including the rights to dignity, freedom of speech and association, procession participation, academic freedom, equality, and non-discrimination.”
In May 2023, Uganda passed one of the world’s toughest anti-LGBT laws, including the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality.” Some Western Activists said it unleashed a wave of abuse and the World Bank suspended new funding to the country, but the country had prevailed despite the onslaught on the country.
GNA
BM/ENA
28 Feb. 2024
