The recently commissioned LGBT office in Accra which has since been closed down
The widely circulated news about the opening of a new office space for a lesbian, gay, bisexual transgender and queer intersex (LGBTQI) in Accra to facilitate their activities is causing uneasy calm in the country.
Executive Secretary of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values, Moses Foh-Amoaning, has vowed that they will fight to ensure the offices are closed down entirely since their activities are against the laws of the country.
The Catholic Bishop Conference, the Christian Council as well as the Ghana Pentecostal Council have also added its voice to the issue, insisting that the practice must not be countenanced.
The group, LGBT+ Rights Ghana on January 31, 2021, reportedly hosted a fundraiser to officially introduce and promote its office and community space.
Open Support
Later, the European Union (EU) confirmed that it participated in the opening of a new office space for the LGBTQI rights group in Accra, reiterating its support for similar organisations.
In attendance at the fundraiser were some invited guests including the Australian High Commissioner, Gregory Andrews, the Danish Ambassador, Tom Nørring and some delegates FROM the EU.
In a post on Facebook, the EU in Ghana posted, “A couple of weeks ago the EU in Ghana participated in the opening of the new community space of the @LGBTRightsGhana. Equality, tolerance and respect for each other are core values of the EU. The EU supports civil society organisations promoting #LGBTIQ rights #EU4LGBT.”
Closed Down
DAILY GUIDE is hearing that the security agencies have since moved in to close down the place.
According to Lawyer Foh-Amoaning, the existence of the office is an affront to the laws, traditions and customs of the country.
He explained that Ghana as a country had not signed any international laws permitting the promotion of LGBTQI activities in the country, therefore any attempt by anyone to promote the activities of the group amounted to illegality.
Opposing Views
Mr. Foh-Amoaning noted that on the contrary, international laws such as the Economic, Cultural, Social and Political Rights of the United Nations treaty, which the country had ratified, protected the sovereignty of Ghana to defend its cultural values.
He accused the international community in Ghana for promoting an act which he said was alien to the customs and traditions of Ghanaians and infringed on the sovereignty of the state.
He appealed to Parliament to quickly move and pass comprehensive legislation to deal effectively with the issue, adding that “We call on all state agencies including Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), the Ghana AIDS Commission, the police, politicians and the media to take all steps to protect our nation from the negative impact of this LGBTQI.”
Most Reverend Philip K. Naameh, President of the Catholic Bishops Conference, described the LGBTQI agenda as a “complete disorder of the fundamental law of God in creating man and woman.”
“The LGBTQI is a clear departure from God’s purpose of creation because the woman was not created to be an object of pleasure for man,” he said, adding that the Catholic as a Church would only continue to recognise marriages between a man and a woman to ensure that God’s purpose of creation materialized.
A representative from the Christian Council of Ghana, Reverend Godwin Amuzu, urged Ghanaians to remain resolute in maintaining the culture and sanctity of the State as believers in God.
The Reverend Johnny Apeakorang, who represented the Ghana Pentecostal and Charismatic Churches, said the association would continue to render its support to the coalition to ensure that its goal was achieved.
Fighting Back
The LGBT+ Rights Ghana, in its official communiqué, appears to be fighting back, saying it “has an irrevocable right to exist as a recognized entity and movement entitled to all the rights and protection guaranteed under Article 21 of Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.”
According to the communiqué, it stated that “we have the right as Ghanaians to live in peace, join groups, be protected from harm and have our privacy respected.”
It indicated that “we are well aware of the National Coalition for Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values aims, and we strongly condemn their plan to discord and incite violence against an oppressed minority group like ours.”
An advocate against lesbianism and homosexuality asked cynically that “How were the Europeans and the Americans able to convince Africans that it is lawful to practice homosexuality and lesbianism but it is unlawful to practice polygamy? They cannot dictate to us. Our leaders must stand firm!”
By Melvin Tarlue