Harsh anti-LGBTQ bill heads to Ghana’s Supreme Court this week
Bill seeks jail time for anyone who identifies as LGBTQ
In Ghana, legal and media practitioner Richard Dela Sky and researcher Dr. Amanda Odoi are scheduled to appear before the Ghana Supreme Court on Wednesday to present their two separate petitions challenging the passage of the anti-LGBTQ+ Bill by the Parliament of Ghana, the LGBTQ rights group Rightify Ghana reports.
The petitions – separately filed by Richard Sky and Amanda Odoi – focus mainly on the procedural breaches and technicalities that were not followed by parliament, including the Speaker, Rightify Ghana stated.
Sky FM Ghana reported that Sky, a “private legal practitioner, and Dr Amanda Odoi, a researcher at the University of Cape Coast are challenging the constitutionality of the passage of the LQBTQ+ Bill.”
In addition to challenging the passage of the bill on procedural grounds, Sky’s suit states that parliament exceeded its authority by voting for changes that would impose a financial burden on the state and would “contravene the Constitutional safeguards of liberties and rights of Ghanaians”.
Case on anti-LGBTQ bill’s constitutionality starts Wednesday
Bill seeks jail time for anyone who identifies as LGBTQ
By Ekow Dontoh and Yinka Ibukun
Ghana’s Supreme Court will start hearing arguments on the constitutionality of a proposed law that seeks to punish people identifying as LGBTQ with up to three years in prison.
Richard Sky, a Ghanaian lawyer and journalist, the speaker of parliament and the attorney general are among those summoned to the top court Wednesday [May 8], according to a court notice seen by Bloomberg.
The notice was confirmed by Sky, who filed the lawsuit to rule the draconian bill as unconstitutional.
Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo refused to consider the bill, which requires his assent to become law, until the Supreme Court rules on the case. Lawmakers, who argue that the president’s delay is unconstitutional, have in turn stalled the approval of new cabinet ministers to pressure him into making a decision.
A Supreme Court ruling would pave the way for Akufo-Addo to do one of three things: reject the bill, approve it, or refer it to the Council of State for further advice.
Ghanaian lawmakers passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, which would also legalize discrimination and force people to report anyone who’s gay to authorities, in February. The bill’s passage drew criticism from key development partners, spurring Ghana’s Finance Ministry to flag the potential economic implications of an approval.
