US Ambassador to Ghana says there are ‘far more gay people there than Ghanaians realise’
America’s ambassador to Ghana, Robert Jackson, has said there are “far more gays in Ghana than Ghanaians realise”.
Jackson made an appearance on GhanaWeb’s show ’21 Minutes with KKB’ during which he discussed the plight of LGBT peolpe in Ghana and how things might change.
He said that he thinks people are born gay and that human rights should be upheld.
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Going on he also said LGBT Ghanaians will face pressure to keep their sexual orientations “very private”.
He said: “I believe that everyone should enjoy the same human rights and personally I believe that people are either born homosexual or heterosexual, it is not a lifestyle choice,” he said.
“Statistics indicate that probably 10 per cent of people are born gay.
“I think there are far more gays in Ghana than Ghanaians realise but because of societal pressure, societal attitude, they keep their sexuality private.
“But the United States is not asking anyone to their religious believes or to legalise homosexuality. We are asking that all people be treated the same. That they have the same human rights and the same rights to privacy.”
Continuing, the ambassador said he was hopeful that Ghana might legalise homosexuality.
“This is a long process and it was a long process in my country. Homosexual marriage has only become law in very recent years and prior to that, when I was growing up nobody talked about homosexuality.
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“Everyone who was gay suffered enormous discrimination and that has changed in the United States because people have a better understanding of the science and of the issues now”.
The President of Ghana last year shocked followers when he said that the country is bound to eventually decriminalise homosexuality – but only after popular support grows.
A TV host was criticised for her “unprofessional” behaviour during an interview with Ghana’s ‘first’ transgender woman, posted on social media earlier this year.
