Africa
Ghanaian man assaulted for being gay
Alleged assailants told victim that anti-LGBTQ bill was law
Four people last week assaulted a Ghanaian man who they accused of being gay.
According to the Queer Ghana Education Fund, the four men who attacked the man in Zuarungu in the country’s Upper East Region referenced the Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, an anti-LGBTQ bill that is currently before MPs. The assailants, according to QuGEF, told the 25-year-old man, who the group identified as Francis, that the measure had become law.
QuGEF also said two of the four men who attacked Francis have been arrested and charged with “assaulting and stealing from” him.
“They ambushed and accused him of homosexuality and told him that the bill had been passed into law and that they were acting according to the law,” said QuGEF in a press release.
Rightify Ghana, another LGBTQ rights group, commended the police’s swift response.
“The misinformation has gone far and bad actors are targeting LGBTQ persons believing that the bill has been passed and they can act unlawfully,” said Rightify Ghana. “Good that two out of four of the perpetrators have been arrested by the police in Bolgatanga, following a report made by QuGEF.”
Although President Nana Akufo-Addo has not signed the bill, many politicians and religious leaders have given Ghanaians the impression that it is now law. Many LGBTQ Ghanaians as a result have been ridiculed and assaulted in public, leaving many of them in fear to publicly disclose their gender identity or sexual orientation.
Apostle Kadmiel E.H. Agbalenyoh, founder and leader of the Seventh Day Congregation of Theocracy, and his church on Jan. 1 organized an anti-LGBTQ seminar and protest that took place at the Achimota Girls’ Guide in Accra, the country’s capital. Greater Accra Regional Chief Imam Alhaji Sule Issa chaired the event that other faith leaders and radio personality Blakk Rasta attended.
Rightify Ghana described the protest as “the first anti-LGBTQ event this year” and it was “organized by a long time homophobe whose hate campaign is not new.” The group also said the remarks by MP Sam George, one of the bill’s sponsors who said lawmakers will pass it before the end of next month, are not true.
“Whilst the Parliament of Ghana has only done up to Clause 6 in the Consideration Stage, the MP falsely claimed that they had worked on 11 clauses. He is setting deadlines and lying about work they have not yet done,” said Rightify Ghana.
“Contrary to what he said, only s out of the 25 clauses have been considered by Parliament,” the group further noted. “Even with those six, some were referred to the drafting division to be worked on and those that were proposed to be deleted are to be reintroduced under other yet-to-be-discussed clauses or separately at the end.”
Activism Ghana, another advocacy group, also accused George of giving false timelines.
“He keeps lying, even about his own bill,” said Activism Ghana.
Former President John Mahama, who is a presidential candidate for the National Democratic Congress, the leading opposition party, has encouraged MPs to pass the bill and for Akufo-Addo to sign it into law.
“I am against LGBTQ, my faith doesn’t support it a man is a man, a woman is a woman,” said Mahama.
Presidential and Parliamentary elections will take place in December.
Ghana
Activists: Ghanaian presidential election results will not improve LGBTQ rights
Supreme Court on Dec. 18 to rule on anti-LGBTQ law
Former Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama from the opposition National Democratic Congress has won Saturday’s general elections, defeating current Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia of the New Patriotic Party.
The NDC before the election had pledged its support for the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, which would further criminalize LGBTQ people and those who support them.
The bill, which MPs approved in February, has yet to be signed by outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo because of a ruling the Supreme Court is expected to issue on Dec. 18. Richard Dela Sky, a journalist and private lawyer, challenged the law in March.
The NDC, NPP and other parties used recognition of LGBTQ rights to persuade Ghanaians to vote for them. Mahama during a BBC interview last week said LGBTQ rights are against African culture and religious doctrine.
Berinyuy Hans Burinyuy, LGBT+ Rights Ghana’s director for communications, said homophobic attacks and public demonstrations increased during the campaign.
“The passage of the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill into law will institutionalize State-sanctioned discrimination and violence against LGBTQ+ individuals, leaving little to no legal recourse for those affected,” said Burinyuy. “The climate of fear and uncertainty that has gripped Ghana’s LGBTQ+ community cannot be overstated.”
“While the political atmosphere remains hostile, there is still hope that the Supreme Court will rule in favor of human rights and constitutional protections,” added Burinyuy. “Should the court strike down the bill, it will be a significant victory for LGBTQ+ rights and a blow to the growing wave of homophobia that has swept the country.”
Awo Dufie, an intersex person and cross-dresser, said the LGBTQ community is going to be at increased risk under the NDC-led government because it supports anti-LGBTQ rhetoric.
“Mahama supported the anti-LGBT bill as well as the arrest and prosecution of human rights defenders,” noted Dufie. “Politicizing queer rights as a distraction actually started under Atta Mills (the-late president of Ghana) and the NDC government in 2011, and it was an NDC MP (Sam George) who furthered this in 2021 vocalizing support for the anti-LGBT bill.”
Dufie added Ghanaians “voted out a worse corrupt government who had no respect for human rights, and brought in a former corrupt president who has also promised to not respect human rights.”
Activism Ghana, another LGBTQ rights group, said the attacks against LGBTQ Ghanaians are a series of political ploys designed to win votes as opposed to accelerating development.
“Hate the gays, win the votes, and when they win and fail to deliver development and prosperity, they scapegoat the gays to take away attention from real problems,” said Activism Ghana.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday congratulated Mahama’s election, and noted Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang will become the country’s first female vice president.
“The United States commends the Electoral Commission, its hundreds of thousands of poll workers, civil society, and the country’s security forces, who helped ensure a peaceful and transparent process,” said Blinken in a statement. “We also applaud Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia for his gracious acceptance of the results.”
Mahama’s inauguration will take place on Jan. 7.
Advocacy groups continue to urge Akufo-Addo to veto the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill or amend sections that further criminalize LGBTQ people and allies.
South Africa
WorldPride 2028 to take place in Cape Town
South Africa is first African country to host event
Cape Town last month secured enough votes to host WorldPride in 2028.
The bidding process, which started in late October, took place in Medellín, Colombia, where the Guadalajara (Mexico) Pride and WorldPride Cape Town bidding teams contended for the rights to host WorldPride. InterPride, which organizes the event, on Nov. 8 officially declared Cape Town the host of WorldPride 2028.
It will be the first time WorldPride will take place in an African country.
South Africa is the only country on the continent that constitutionally recognizes LGBTQ rights. South Africa, as a result, in recent years has seen a surge in the number of LGBTQ asylum seekers from Africa and around the world.
Reacting to the historical precedence, Cape Town Pride said it was now time for Africa to shine and acknowledged the WorldPride Cape Town bidding team and the city of Cape Town for their role in the bidding process.
“This is a first for the whole continent of Africa,” said Cape Town Pride CEO Tommy Patterson. “A few weeks ago, in Medellín, Cape Town Pride, the city of Cape Town, and the bidding team presented our bid. The team did a wonderful job and we all forged great friendships and allies from Pride groups all over the globe.”
“Cape Town Pride is thrilled by the news and support shown by the global LGBTI+ family,” added Patterson.
Michael Gladwin of the WorldPride Cape Town bidding team echoed Patterson’s excitement.
“This will mark the first time WorldPride is held on the African continent, and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome the global LGBTQ+ community to our beautiful city,” said Gladwin. “A heartfelt thank you goes out to all our incredible partners who supported this journey. Together, we will showcase Cape Town as a beacon of inclusivity and diversity.”
Gladwin also congratulated Guadalajara Pride for their bid.
“Their commitment in promoting LGBTQ+ rights is inspiring, and we look forward to collaborating in the future,” said Gladwin.
Cape Town’s LGBTQ community is celebrating the successful bid, while others in the city have criticized it.
Rev. Oscar Bougardt, founder and lead pastor of the Calvary Hope Baptist Church, described WorldPride as “garbage” and “filth” that should be condemned.
“I am happy to say I am amongst the pastors in Cape Town who are in opposition and are outraged at this garbage planned for 2028,” said Bougardt. “The city of Cape Town and LGBTQ+ organizations planned this event without consulting rate payers, this bid was done in secret and taxpayers’ money will be used to fund this filth.”
“Just as the LGBTQ + organizations have the right to host WorldPride 2028, we have the right to say we don’t want it in Cape Town,” he added. “I pray more church leaders will stand up against the planned WorldPride 2028. To church leaders and parents, this is the time to unite and tell the city of Cape Town and LGBTQ+ organizations that we are disgusted at the planned event. Untied we stand and divided we will fall!”
Kaohsiung, Taiwan, in 2022 won the bid to host WorldPride 2025, but the local planning committee withdrew it amid a dispute with InterPride. WorldPride 2025 will take place in D.C. from May 17-June 8, 2025.
The 2024 ILGA World Conference took place last month in Cape Town.
Uganda
Ugandan court awards $40K to men tortured after arrest for alleged homosexuality
Torture took place in 2020 during COVID-19 lockdown
A Ugandan court on Nov. 22 awarded more than $40,000 (Shs 150 million) to 20 men who police tortured after their 2020 arrest for alleged homosexuality.
The High Court of Uganda’s Civil Division ruling notes “police and other state authorities” arrested the men in Nkokonjeru, a town in central Uganda, on March 29, 2020, and “allegedly tortured.”
“They assert that on the morning of the said date their residence was invaded by a mob, among which were the respondents, that subjected them to all manner of torture because they were practicing homosexuality,” reads the ruling. “The alleged actions of torture include beating, hitting, burning using a hot piece of firewood, undressing, tying, biding, conducting an anal examination, and inflicting other forms of physical, mental, and psychological violence based on the suspicion that they are homosexuals, an allegation they deny.”
The arrests took place shortly after the Ugandan government imposed a lockdown in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Based on the same suspicion (of homosexuality), the applicants were then arrested, taken to Nkokonjeru B police station, and charged with doing a negligent act likely to spread infection by disease,” reads the ruling.
The ruling notes the men “were charged” on March 31, 2020, and sent to prison, “where they were again allegedly beaten, examined, harassed, and subjected to discrimination.”
Consensual same-sex sexual relations remain criminalized in Uganda.
President Yoweri Museveni in 2023 signed the Anti-Homosexuality Act, which contains a death penalty provision for “aggravated homosexuality.” LGBTQ activists continue to challenge the law.
Sexual Minorities Uganda Executive Director Frank Mugisha on X described the Nov. 22 ruling as a “significant victory for the LGBTQ+ community.”
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