Ghana parliament approves anti-LGBTQ law

Ghana parliament approves anti-LGBTQ law

Ghana’s parliament on Friday approved one of the most repressive anti-LGBTQ laws in Africa, which is now awaiting ratification by President John Mahama.

The law on sexual rights and family values imposes a penalty of up to three years’ imprisonment for people who engage in homosexual relations, and between three and five years for the promotion, sponsorship or intentional support of LGBT+ activities.

The bill was already passed unanimously by parliament in 2024 but former president Nana Akufo-Addo did not sign it.

Under Ghana’s constitution, draft legislation not signed by the president before the end of a parliamentary term automatically lapses and requires re-examination by the new parliament.

The law approved on Friday retains the previous bill’s core provisions but includes exemptions for legal, media and healthcare professionals.

Same-sex relationships are prohibited in Ghana — a conservative, deeply religious country with a Christian majority — by a law dating from the British colonial era but there have been no prosecutions on these grounds to date.

Human rights groups and several international organisations have condemned the bill.

AFP