Anyone who identifies as part of the LGBTIQ+ community in Ghana could face up to three years in prison, after the African country's Parliament passed strict new legislation.
The law also imposes a maximum penalty of up to five years for those who form or finance groups related to gender and sexual orientation diversities.
While the bill was being passed, there were attempts to replace prison sentences with community services and counseling, but they did not succeed.
It is the latest sign of growing opposition to LGBTQ+ rights in the conservative West African nation.
The law, which was supported by both of Ghana's main political parties, will come into force only if President Nana Akufo-Addo signs it into law.
The president has said that he will sign it if the majority of Ghanaians so wish.
The crime be different
Sex between same-sex couples is illegal in Ghana. Anyone found guilty could receive a three-year prison sentence.
Last month, Amnesty International warned that the bill “poses significant threats to the fundamental rights and freedoms” of LGBTIQ+ people.
Activists fear there is now a witch hunt against members of the LGBTIQ+ community and those campaigning for their rights. Some, these organizations say, will have to go into hiding.
“If Ghana's Sexual Human Rights and Family Values Bill becomes law, it will exacerbate fear and hatredcould incite violence against Ghanaian citizens and negatively impact freedom of expression, freedom of movement and freedom of association,” said Winnie Byanyima, head of the UN agency that fights HIV and AIDS.
He added that this “obstructs access to life-saving services” and would “jeopardize Ghana's development success.”
A large project
The law provides for a prison sentence of up to 10 years for anyone involved in LGBTQ+ campaigns targeting children.
It also encourages the public to report members of the LGBTQ+ community to authorities so that “necessary action” can be taken against them.
The parliamentarians highlighted that the bill was drafted in response to the opening of Ghana's first community center for sexually diverse people, located in Accra, its capital, in January 2021.
Police closed the center after protests and pressure from religious bodies and traditional leaders in a largely Christian nation.
At the time, the Christian Council of Ghana and the Pentecostal and Charismatic Council said in a joint statement that being LGBTIQ+ was “alien to Ghanaian culture and family value system and as such cannot be accepted by the citizens of this nation.” .
The bill approved by lawmakers is a watered-down version of an earlier draft. In this latest version, prison sentences have been shortened and a clause on conversion therapies has been removed.
During the debate that lasted several days, the deputy parliamentary leader who belongs to the ruling party, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, suggested new changes.
He said lawmakers should decide, by secret ballot, whether people convicted of being members of the LGBTQ+ community should be jailed by courts or forced to perform community service and counseling.
However, legislators who supported prison sentences interrupted it so that the project could be voted on.
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BBC-NEWS-SRC: https://www.bbc.com/mundo/articles/c513yj784pdo, IMPORTING DATE: 2024-02-28 22:48:03
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