Facing Peril: The Risk of Entrapment, Violence, and Extortion for Ghana’s LGBTQ Community

 Wed--Kwei

As I prepare for tonight's signing of The Whitewashed Tombs at Vroman's, Pasadena, the real-life stories that inspired the novel weigh on my mind. The Whitewashed Tombs deals with the murder of an LGBTQ activist in Ghana, a tale rooted in the harsh realities many still face today.

Yesterday, I conducted a video WhatsApp interview with Hamza, a young man living in Accra, Ghana, who survived a brutal assault because of his perceived identity. The episode was posted to Facebook. His story of resilience amidst fear and violence resonates deeply with the novel's themes, where truth is often buried under layers of hypocrisy and hate. As we reflect on these realities in fiction and life, Hamza’s story is a powerful reminder of the ongoing struggle for justice and dignity.

Hamza  (Image altered by AI for his protection)

                                                                            

                                                                          

Interview

KQ: Can you tell me a bit about your living situation?

H: I live with my grandmother in Nima, Accra. It’s not the safest place, but it’s home.

KQ: I understand you were assaulted in Nima. Can you explain what happened?

H: I was lured to a spot by someone I thought I could trust. Once there, a group attacked me. It was a vigilante pile-on. They beat me badly, and I suffered multiple injuries.

KQ: How has that experience changed the way you live?

H: I don’t go out after 7 p.m. anymore. I only go to places where I know I’ll be safe and where I might have some protection if something happens.

KQ: Do you think people recognize or target you because of your appearance?

H: Yes, maybe. Some people say I have effeminate airs. I guess that makes me a target.

KQ: Are you in a relationship right now?

H: No, I’m not in a relationship.

KQ: You mentioned being lured and blackmailed. Can you explain that?

H: Yeah, once, after I was lured to a hotel room and was having intimacy with a man, they filmed it and threatened to post it to Facebook and expose where I live unless I paid them money.

KQ: Despite all this, you seem pretty resilient. How do you stay strong?

H: I don’t have much of a choice. This is the reality of life here, especially with people’s attitudes.

KQ: Do you see any hope for attitudes changing, especially with the anti-gay bill being discussed?

H: There’s almost no chance people will change, especially with how religion plays into it. That bill is just making things worse.

KQ: How has the anti-gay bill specifically affected you?

H: Well, people jeer at me and say, “When the bill passes, you’ll see what we’ll do to you.” It’s a threat I hear often.

KQ: Did you report the attack to the police?

H: Yes, but they took the report, nothing would happen. I’ve reported it to Human Rights Watch, but their actions don’t have much power within our law and justice system. I don’t expect much to come of it.

KQ: What about in rural areas? Do you think the anti-gay bill has much impact there?

H: Not really. The effects are mainly in the larger towns and cities. In rural areas, people are more focused on surviving day-to-day. But in the cities, it’s a different story.

KQ: Do you think LGBTQ+ tourists are in danger of this kind of violence?

H: I don’t know of any tourists who have suffered such attacks.*

*There are accounts of tourists being entrapped and extorted for money or their mobile phones.

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OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT AKUFO-ADDO OF GHANA

On July 7, 2023, Ghana’s 275 members of Parliament unanimously passed an extreme anti-gay bill, which is set to tighten laws against members of the LGBTQ+ community.  the bill, known as the 2021 Promotion of Appropriate Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill. 

Although not as severe as Uganda’s “Kill the Gays” bill signed into law by the clueless, corrupt President Yoweri Museveni, Ghana’s version is plenty draconian enough.

3 to 5 years of imprisonment for engaging in same-sex intercourse;

5 to 10 years of imprisonment for anyone who produces, procures, or distributes material deemed to be "promoting LGBT+ activities;"

A requirement for citizens and institutions to "promote and protect proper human sexual rights and Ghanaian family values";

6 months to 1 year imprisonment for a "public show of amorous relations" between people of the same sex;

6 months to 1 year imprisonment for a "public show of amorous relations " with someone who has undergone gender reassignment or who cross-dresses;

A ban on providing trans healthcare.

The language in this bill is written by a bunch of rabid, LGBTQ-hating, ignorant idiots. I cannot even express the depth of my disgust with these people. I draw your attention to the vague, subjective nature of some of the clauses in the bill: What does “promoting LGBTQ+ activities” mean? Answer: Whatever you damn well please.

What does it mean for "citizens and institutions to promote and protect proper human sexual rights and Ghanaian family values? I haven’t a clue. It could mean anything. 

Ghana’s bill is part of an epidemic of anti-gay legislation sweeping the continent of Africa. I’ll present a more in-depth review of the issues in a couple of weeks, but just for perspective, out of the 54 countries in Africa, discrimination against LGBTQ persons is illegal only in Angola, Botswana, Cape Verde, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, and South Africa. The rest have different penalties for homosexuality up to and including the death penalty e.g. Uganda, or are revamping old laws to render them more severe, e.g. Kenya. 

In Ghana, just as in the USA, the bill must go to Ghana's President Nana Akufo-Addo desk for his signature, or assent, as they call it. One might argue about how skilled a politician Akufo-Addo is, but he’s certainly not the idiot that Museveni is. Ghana enjoys a particularly elevated status with the USA. If Akufo-Addo assents to this bill, it will be an error of colossal proportions.

In view of this, I have written open letter to President Akufo-Addo, which you can read below. I sent it to his official email, but the chance that he or his Chief of Staff will actually read it is slim to none--Ghanaians don’t read emails. Okay, that was a little snarky. I think the problem is really that they don’t respond to them.

To: His Excellency, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, The President of the Republic of Ghana, Jubilee House, Kanda, Accra, Ghana.

12 July 2023

Dear Mr. President,

SUBJECT: APPEAL TO REJECT THE "BILL FOR PROPER HUMAN SEXUAL RELATIONS AND GHANAIAN FAMILY VALUES"

I write to you with deep concern and a fervent plea for you to consider the long-term implications of signing into law the Bill for Proper Human Sexual Relations and Ghanaian Family Values, which was recently passed by Parliament. While it is essential to uphold Ghana’s cherished cultural values and societal norms, it is equally crucial to protect the human rights and fundamental freedoms that underpin our democratic state.

As a Ghanaian-American deeply invested in Ghana’s future, I am anxious about the potential repercussions this legislation could have on our global reputation, our economy, and, most importantly, the lives of countless LGBTQIA+ Ghanaians who may be directly or indirectly affected.

This Bill infringes on the principles of equality, non-discrimination, and privacy that are enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana. It threatens to marginalize and further alienate LGBTQIA+ individuals based on their sexual orientation and personal choices, which are inherently private and should not be subject to legal scrutiny. 

By endorsing such a Bill, we stand to compromise our collective commitment to human rights, which could undermine Ghana's reputation as a beacon of democratic values in Africa. Ghana stands head and shoulders above many African countries on many levels, and some look to Ghana for guidance. We simply cannotblindly follow Uganda’s horrendous example of their draconian “Kill the Gays” law. We are much, much better than that. In some ways, Ghana’s Parliament isn’t elevating Ghana’s international standing, it is taking a wrecking ball to it.

You know better than I that the enforcement of this Bill could have severe implications for our economy. Ghana's economic growth and development largely hinge on strong ties with international partners and stakeholders, many of whom champion inclusivity and human rights. Approval of this Bill could strain these relationships, potentially leading to reductions in foreign investments, trade, tourism, aid, and healthcare initiatives. 

According to UN AIDS, Ghana saw a 21% fall in the incidence of HIV between 2010 and 2021 due to the results of sex education, preventive measures, and the care medical providers render to LGBTQIA+ persons. The Bill threatens to reverse these gains because it will drive the LGBTQIA+ community underground and make individuals afraid to seek medical care. This will lead inevitably to the unchecked spread of HIV, which is not in Ghana’s interest.

I urge you, Mr. President, to strongly and deeply reconsider assenting to this Bill. I implore you to engage with civil society, human rights advocates, legal experts, religious leaders, and the wider Ghanaian public to carefully deliberate further on the implications of this law. Such a step would reinforce our democratic ideals of dialogue, compromise, and consensus-building.

Mr. President, Ghana has a long history of upholding human dignity and promoting peace. As we strive to build a society where all individuals are accorded their due rights and freedoms, it is imperative that we refrain from institutionalizing laws that may perpetuate division and discrimination. We simply cannot go backwards on human rights. We must strive forward.

I trust that you will put the best interests of the people of Ghana at heart, and continue to be a stalwart leader for human rights and inclusivity in our great nation. I know personally that your capacity for nuanced thought and reasoning far exceeds that of many African leaders. Thank you for your dedication to serving our country and its people.

Yours faithfully,

Kwei M Jones-Quartey, M.D.

Pasadena, California

 

AN ILL WIND--LGBTQ+ RIGHTS IN GHANA

Wed--Kwei

LGBTQ+ Rights in Ghana

Just as in the US, a wave of vitriol is being directed at LGBTQ+ persons in Ghana. The sources of the castigations are the National House of Chiefs (NHC), the National Chief Imam, the Christian Council, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference, and various politicians. The NHC issued a statement that said in part, “...nowhere does the Ghanaian culture subscribe to LGBTQI which is a taboo, inhuman and alien to our society...” This claim is based on the false concept that homosexuality in Africa is strictly an import from the West. We know this isn’t true because of condemnatory writings of early Portuguese explorers who described a range of African sexual relations including homosexuality. Wide variations in sexual preference are seen all over the world. Africa is no exception. The Nzima of Ghana had a tradition of adult men marrying each other, usually with a difference of about ten years. Thousands of years ago, the San people of Zimbabwe depicted sex or amorous exchange between men.

Cave paintings of the San people near Guruve in Zimbabwe

                                        (Mehra, Bharat & Lemieux, Paul & Stophel, Keri. (2019)

The British colonizers codified homosexuality into law as “unnatural carnal knowledge,” a ridiculous phrase that remains on Ghana’s law books till this day. However, in 2021, a small group of ministers of parliament (MPs) in Ghana introduced a similarly ludicrously worded anti-LGBTQ bill called the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values. This would introduce jail terms up to up to ten years for “promotion” of LGBTQ activities, five years for same-sex intercourse, and up to one year for a same-sex “public show of amorous relations,” whatever the that means.

One of the main proponents for the anti-gay bill is a fine specimen of humanity called Moses Foh-Amoaning, the executive secretary of the National Coalition of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Family Values. The irony is that Moses is among one of Ghana's most marginalized groups: albinos, who are the target of persecution and ritual killings at the hands of people who believe that body parts of an albino have magical powers.

Moses Foh-Amoaning (Image: modernghana.com)

So, rather than putting his energy into advocating for the stigmatized group to which he belongs, he spends time demonizing another stigmatized population. Go figure. He was sacked from the Association of African Albinos for his hate speech against gay people. At the behest of Moses, a bunch of hoodlums tore down two “Love, Tolerance, and Acceptance” Accra billboards sponsored by LGBT+ Rights, an organization founded by gay activist Alex Donkor.

Even though the bill hasn’t been signed into law, Ghana’s queer communities have been suffering increased attacks including gang rapes, forced evictions, and attempts at “conversion,” a long-debunked concept. Homophobic vigilantes use social media and sex sites to lure gay people into perilous circumstances. LGBTQ+ parties, meetings, and other get-togethers are sometimes raided either by the police or hostile gangs who, in addition to physically assaulting the gay attendees, rob them of items like phones and jewelry, and blackmailing them with the threat of photos of them stripped naked or in other compromising situations. Bizarrely, there have been occasions in which the police arrest the gay victims and let the attackers go.

The greatest irony is that while homosexuality in Ghana isn’t a western import, homophobia is. The American organization World Congress of Families (WCF) has been instrumental in pushing draconian anti-gay penalties in Russia (where billionaire oligarchs provide funding), Uganda, Kenya, and Nigeria. WCF has strong ties to American religious and conservative groups such as Focus On The Family and the Knights of Columbus. The First Ladies of Nigeria and Uganda attended WCF events shortly before their respective governments implemented anti-LGBTQ+ measures. The Southern Poverty Law Center has labeled the WCF a hate group. Among the conspiracy lies peddled by the WCF are that LGBTQ+ people are responsible for the Holocaust and the Rwandan Genocide.

 

I am always amazed that anyone would be proud to go to their grave with the legacy of having persecuted other human beings. 

You can be sure that in 2024, Emma Djan will be tackling homophobia in Ghana.

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