GHANA: Gay and lesbian conference banned

On August 31 Ghana's government banned an international conference for gay men and lesbians that was due to take place on September 4. Information minister Kwame Bartels said: "Unnatural carnal knowledge is illegal under our criminal code. Homosexuality, lesbianism and bestiality are therefore offences under the laws of Ghana." On September 5 the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission reported: "Since then newspapers and radio call in shows in the West African country have been obsessed with the topic of homosexuality and the sentiment has been strongly negative and in many cases violent." The IGLHRC report said that "Both the dates and the location of the conference have been sketchy", leaving many wondering "whether the event isn't a red herring, introduced by an unknown source to galvanize resentment against Ghana's increasingly visible gay and lesbian community".

From GLW issue 683