Accra April 14, GNA - Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey, Minister of Tourism and Modernization of the Capital City on Wednesday urged Ghanaians to be associated and involved in the Emancipation Day celebrations as a way of recalling history, and chart a more "positive course to reconcile with our brothers and sisters in the Diaspora."

"Over the years, a most erroneous impression has been created of this celebration as an alien activity to be indulged in, only by foreigners, especially the African-American community and the time has come for Ghanaians to change this mentality," he said.

Launching this year's Emancipation Day in Accra, the Tourism Minister said there was the need for Ghanaians to learn more about the slave trade, find out the roles of their ancestors in its perpetration and use it as a basis to understand those in the Diaspora. This year's Emancipation Day celebration is under the theme: "Emancipation-Our Heritage, Our strength, with a sub-theme, "Retracing Our Steps-The path to Development."

The Minister said, this year's celebration would assume added importance within the context of the Ministry's Strategic Action Plan, which, aims at making Ghana the "gateway to the homeland" by the year 2007.

He said the Day would not only boost tourism in Ghana, but concretise the Joseph project which aims at trying to understand the tragedy of the slave trade and slavery, and showcase the spirit of excellence of the Black Man in all aspects of human endeavour. He said the celebration of the Emancipation Day would also help Ghanaians to know more about how to turn the tragedy the ancestors passed through during "their journey of no return" into something more positive for the country, the continent and the people not only in Ghana but in the Diaspora.

Mr Obetsebi-Lamptey noted that the celebration would provide an opportunity for Africans to go back into history and find out about activities most cruel in human history, and whose effect had been with the world ever since, especially in recent times.

He said participants in this year's event would, for the first time visit refugee sites like the Tukpon Island near Wa, slave defence walls at Gwollu in the Upper West Region, slave camps at Paga in the Upper East Region and slave markets at Sakplae and Salaga in the Northern Region.

This, he explained, would enable the local people at those places to re-enact what their ancestors went through in those days. This year's Emancipation Day Celebration would start from July 26 to August 2