A group of 10 lawmakers in Ghana has resubmitted a controversial bill that would impose some of the toughest restrictions on LGBT rights in Africa.
The bill calls for a three-year jail term for LGBT people and five to ten years for promoters and advocates.
The bill was approved by parliament last year, but former President Akufo Addo refused to sign it into law before leaving office in January, citing legal concerns.
It has been strongly attacked by both local and international human rights organizations, with some describing it as draconian.
The original bill had expired at the end of the previous parliament. It is unknown whether the incoming parliament’s speaker will take the bill up for discussion.
Gay intercourse is already punishable by up to three years in prison in this conservative West African nation.
President John Dramani Mahama has stated that he would want the bill to be state-sponsored, which would ensure greater support and consultation.
“I do think that we should have a conversation on it again so that all of us, if we decide to move that bill forward, move it forward with a consensus,” he said.
Supporters claim that the bill will help maintain Ghanaian culture and family values.
However, rights groups have condemned the legislation as draconian.
“The anti-LGBT rights bill is inconsistent with Ghana’s long-standing tradition of peace, tolerance, and hospitality and flies in the face of the country’s international human rights obligations,” said Human Rights Watch researcher Larissa Kojoué last year.
“Such a law would not only further erode the rule of law in Ghana but could also lead to further gratuitous violence against LGBT people and their allies.”
Va-Bene Elikem Fiatsi, a Ghanaian trans woman and LGBT activist, told Reuters that the bill’s reinstatement was “disheartening and difficult to process,” but that LGBT activity will not stop.
The bill’s possible impact on Ghana’s economy is a major issue.
Ghana’s previous finance minister warned that if the bill is passed, the country could lose up to $3.8 billion (£2.9 billion) in World Bank development money, as well as its $3 billion (£2.3 billion) IMF support program.
Opposition legislator John Ntim Fordjour told Reuters that the country no longer had to fear economic penalties, citing the election of US President Donald Trump.
“The global political climate is favorable for conservative values, as demonstrated in the bold conservative pronouncements of President Donald Trump,” he said.
