– ‘Booklong’ Intellectuals, Please Give Ghanaians A Break!

By Dr Alfred B Cudjoe

It is a déjà vu. We have clung to the cliché that whatever comes from the West is the best. We in this part of the world have no right to think for ourselves, even on issues bordering on our culture and way of life as a sovereign country. It needs to be made clear, however, that although we as a people have a lot to learn from the so called civilized world, we are not under any obligation to accept what we judge to be unethical and an abomination to our culture and very existence, no matter how well it has been presented to us by our own intellectuals.

The debate on homosexuality nastily surfaced in Ghana and other African societies a few years ago and, like a dangerous disease which defies all cures, it keeps rearing its ugly head from time to time. It is on whether Ghana and, for that matter, other African countries, not to talk of the developing world as a whole, should encourage the practice of homosexuality and lesbianism. Gay/lesbian activists and their advocates’ argument is that they want an atmosphere where they would not be discriminated against. Their critics – there are many of them – in their counter argument and reaction say their demand is an euphemistic way of seeking to openly promote a practice that is an abomination in our countries, thus luring unsuspecting youth into it.

This debate became more intense when some years back news went round that an international conference of gays and lesbians was going to be held in Ghana. The public outcry and anger that greeted the news led the government into announcing the cancellation of the event, explaining that “homosexuality offends public morality and sensibility.” The statement further said, “Government…shall not condone any such activity which violently offends the culture, morality and heritage of the people of Ghana. Ghanaians are unique people whose culture, morality and heritage totally abhor homosexuality and lesbian practices and other forms of unnatural sexual acts.”

Gay rights activists took their protest to the 41st Ordinary Session of the African Charter on Human and People's Rights (ACHPR), accusing the organizers of failing to put their rights on the table for discussion. In reaction to that accusation and similar ones, the Duty Attorney General at the time, Mr Kwame Osei-Prempeh, clarified the legal position on the issue. He reportedly told the media that lesbianism and homosexuality remain criminal acts under Ghana's statutes. He reportedly quoted section 104, subsection 2, of the 1960 Criminal Code, saying: "Unnatural carnal knowledge is sexual intercourse with a person in an unnatural manner or with an animal." He then asked, "Should we allow people to have unnatural carnal knowledge with animals in the name of respect for fundamental human rights?"

Yet again, in June 2011 Prof Fred Torgbor Sai, a presidential advisor on reproductive health during President John Kufuor’s regime, reignited the controversy by condemning religious leaders in Ghana for their stand against homosexuality. He claimed that the Christian religion has changed and that religious leaders needed to examine their religious teachings well and also urged human rights lawyers to seek an interpretation of the law on gay practice to challenge the way it is being quoted. President Kufuor, the man who had appointed Prof Sai condemned the Prof’s views saying ”God created men and women to mate and procreate, and it is through that we all existed, so same sex practice will end reproduction”, impugning that the practice is un-Godly and would derail reproduction.

Another key public figure, Lauretta Lamptey, on her appointment as head of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) was quoted as calling for the decriminalization of the law on homosexuality. She later denied the claim. But the actual climax of the controversy was when the British Prime Minister David Cameron issued a threat that his government would cut aid to countries which did not accept gay legislation. The threat was widely condemned by the Ghanaian public with some calling on the President at the time, the late Prof Attah Mills, to declare his stand on the issue. Indeed, following a call by prominent religious leaders and other personalities on the President to stand up and be counted, he responded. Prof Mills stated categorically that as a responsible leader he would ensure that gay marriages were never legalised in Ghana and on the African continent as a whole.

However, as stated earlier on, the issue refuses to go away and keeps resurfacing like an unwanted ghost, especially because it is assumes the form of a violent wind, like the hurricane which keeps causing havoc in the USA, and has become no respecter of boundaries. Worst of all some of our intellectuals have become agents for its propagation. Currently in the news is the condemnation of the President of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mr Affail Monney, by some high profiled intellectuals for seeking to involve Ghanaian journalists in the debate on gay rights.

Mr Monney is reported to have stated that the Ghanaian media do not need to assume “a posture of neutrality as far as right and wrong are concerned”, adding that homosexuality is an issue that is totally wrong, morally repugnant, culturally offensive, legally unacceptable and, above all, the laws of Ghana frown on man sleeping with man and woman sleeping with woman. In her reaction to the GJA president’s declaration, Prof Audrey Gadzekpo of the School of Communications, University of Ghana, described the appeal as “bizzare” and “wrong-footed”. She went on to challenge journalists to investigate why religious leaders and traditional rulers are against the practice, making use of tons of research in the area.

For his part, Prof Attafuah, a human rights lawyer and criminologist, said although section 104 of the criminal code criminalises “unnatural canal knowledge”, the offence would be difficult to prove. Rather, in his view, it would be more beneficial for the GJA to focus its attention on the numerous challenges of our time.

Although, admittedly, the president of the GJA’s opinion on the issue and the way it is expressed smack of controversy, it is equally not expected of his critics to opportunistically create a platform out of the issue to promote what is unlawful in Ghana and many other African countries. Reading between the lines one could infer that the learned professors are once again sending a message to those who dare to talk against gay activism. Otherwise they would have just limit their criticism to Mr Monney’s use of language and, indeed, tell their listeners the best way such a point could have been made.

Prof Gadzekpo even goes to extent of speaking the racists’ language by talking about a discrimination against homosexuals and comparing it to discrimination against black Africans by racist whites. One would dare to say that it is a non-existent comparison because while homosexuality is a practice which threatens the very existence of humans, black Africans as a race do not constitute any danger to the human race. It is a known fact that some Europeans use this non-existent comparison to blackmail Africans who dare to speak against homosexual practice. Frankly speaking, no one needs the tons of research that she is referring Mr Monney to when common sense tells us that the primary aim of sex is reproduction, hence the description of homosexuality as unnatural and evil.

Prof Gadzekpo’s derogatory reference to prominent church leaders who stand against the promotion of homosexual practice, calling them “right wing pastors” rather sounds unfair to men of God who are determined not to allow our society to slide into immorality and un-Godliness. In Ghana these days, most of us call ourselves Christians and go to church. Yet we make circular pronouncements such as the one being made against our church leaders, forgetting that, as is said in Revelations 3: 16, you are either a Christian or not. There is therefore no question of being rightist, leftist or centrist. The tragedy of our situation is that some of our intellectuals, in striving to preach Western culture and ideas, fail to acknowledge that Africans also have a culture of their own.

The question is whether it is in our interest to engage in a practice just because it has been embraced by Western countries. One of the few things that Europeans admire about a society like ours is the preservation of some healthy cultural and traditional practices. This is because, contrary to what some of our intellectuals preach, some practices in European and American societies are seriously dividing the people. The adoption of legislation on gay marriage in France which led to the first gay marriage in that country, for example, sparked off series of protests and opposition, showing how the issue has divided the society. Similarly, media analysts observe that Mr David Cameron’s decision to introduce the issue in parliament and lobby for it to be legalised does not go down well with most of the people who voted him into power, especially members of his own Conservative Party. According the Defence Secretary, Mr Philip Hammond, “There is a real sense of anger among many people who are married that any government thinks it has the ability to change the definition of an institution like marriage.”

Yet, even here in Ghana some of our intellectuals think times have changed and that you must be a right wing Christian to still hold on to certain values like marriage between a man and a woman. If they really believe our time should be spent on more pressing issues like portable water for the people, affordable education, employment and so forth, then they should set the example. As has been demonstrated over the years, Ghanaians have overwhelmingly rejected gay practice, even if that will lead to the cutting off of foreign aid to them. They no more have any new lessons to learn from any intellectuals from their tons of research. Please give them a break!