Africa

Kamala Harris Has 'No Moral Right' to Talk About Human Rights in Ghana, Local MP Says

16:22 GMT, 28 March 2023
© AP Photo / Misper Apawu
Muhammad Nooh Osman
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The Parliament of Ghana is about to start debating a controversial anti-LGBTQ bill that stipulates up to 10-year jail terms for those who engage in same-sex activities or show various forms of support for the LGBTQ community.
Sputnik
US Vice President Kamala Harris, who is in Ghana on the first leg of her Africa tour, has no “moral right” to talk about human rights issues in the West Africa’s nation while there is gun violence in her home country, Ghanaian Member of Parliament for the Ningo Prampram constituency Samuel George said.
“Do you think the Parliament of Ghana is going to be guided by the opinion of the vice president of the country that is one of the biggest abusers of human rights? Please,” said George, while speaking on local radio on Tuesday.
As an example, the MP mentioned Monday’s shooting at a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, which saw at least six people killed, including three children, by a 28-year-old former student, who has been identified in US media as a transgender person.
The politician’s remark comes amid debate in Ghana’s Parliament on a bill that, once it becomes law, is expected to criminalize advocacy for gay rights in the country.
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During her stay in Ghana, Harris, who is on a seven-day Africa visit that will also take her to Tanzania and Zambia, said that she had raised the issue of human rights with the country’s president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, at the same time arguing that LGBTQ rights are a human rights issue.

"I feel very strongly about the importance of supporting the freedom and supporting the fighting for equality among all people, and that all people be treated equally. I will also say that this is an issue that we consider, and I consider to be a human rights issue, and that will not change," Harris told reporters, when asked about the US administration's response to foreign governments that have advanced anti-gay legislation, during a joint press conference with the Ghanaian leader.

In his turn, when asked about the anti-LGBTQ bill, titled the "Promotion of Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values," President Akufo-Addo pointed out that it has not yet been passed by the Ghanaian Parliament, and that lawmakers are currently debating it.
He also noted that the legislation was a private members bill, particularly proposed by a group of bipartisan MPs headed by Representative Samuel George.

"In the meantime, the Parliament is dealing with it," the president said. "I've no doubt that the Parliament of Ghana will show, and it has done in the past, one, first of all, sensitivity to human rights issues, as well as to the feelings of our population, and will come out with a responsible response to the proposed legislation."

On Monday, MP George told local media that the anti-LGBTQ bill, which has been with the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament since last year, is currently ready to be presented to his colleagues in the House for further debate and voting. He stressed that his bill does not violate the human rights of any Ghanaian citizen.
AfricaWest AfricaGhanaUSKamala HarrisMPLGBTQhuman rights
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