Ghana’s top court upholds law criminalising gay sex
Prince Frimpong feared LGBTQ+ Ghanaians “will stop going to hospitals” because they won’t feel “safe with whoever is taking care of them” as a result of the anti-LGBTQ+ bill. (Prince Frimpong)
While Ghanaians are still waiting for a decision on a wide-ranging proposed anti-LGBTQ+ bill, the country’s supreme court has now upheld archaic legislation that criminalises gay sex between men.
On Wednesday (24 July), the West African nation’s supreme court dismissed a lawsuit that challenged the Ghanaian Criminal Code of 1960, which prohibits same-sex acts – branding them “unnatural carnal knowledge” – with punishment of up to three years in jail.
The seven-member panel, presided over by justice Paul Baffoe-Bonnie, said reasons for their decision would be given at a later date, Reuters reported.
Under the criminal code – inherited from legislation dating back to British colonial times – LGBTQ+ people in the country already face discrimination, but if the Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill is passed, things will only get worse.
Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill proposes further punishment for LGBTQ+ Ghanaians
Unanimously approved by the country’s parliament in February, the proposed law would impose a prison sentence of up to three years for anyone simply identifying as LGBTQ+. For those who organise or fund LGBTQ+ groups, the prescribed maximum prison sentence is five years.
The bill would also impose a prison term of up to 10 years for anyone involved in LGBTQ+ advocacy campaigns aimed at minors.
Earlier this month, the supreme court deferred ruling on the bill, preventing it from being featured in the presidential election campaign. The director of Amnesty International Ghana, Genevieve Partington, described its initial passage as “shocking and deeply disappointing”.
Last year, Uganda’s anti-homosexuality law prompted the World Bank to halt new loans to the East African country.
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