Foreign Affairs Ministry Clarifies LGBT Abstention at UN Vote

The Foreign Affairs Ministry has released a statement denying claims that Ghana has compromised its stance against LGBT issues by abstaining from a vote at the United Nations.

In the statement, the Ministry said the decision not to vote was due to the Constitution’s prohibition against discriminating against people on the basis of their sexuality.

It described media reports on the vote as misleading.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has closely monitored media commentary on Ghana’s vote at the 59th Session of the Human Rights Council (HRC59) on the resolution for the Renewal of the Mandate of the Independent Expert on Protection Against Violence and Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI).” the statement began.

“There was no vote on the support of LGBTQI for which Ghana abstained, as has been wrongly reported by a section of the Ghanaian media.” 

The statement further explained what happened, noting that the vote was on the renewal of the Mandate of the Independent Expert on Protection Against Violence and Discrimination Based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.

It said the question before the body was whether LGBTQI people should be protected from discrimination and not about supporting the practice.

“Ghana abstained in the vote, to be consistent with Chapter 5, Article 17 of the 1992 Constitution, which specifically prohibits discrimination on the grounds of gender, race, colour, ethnic origin, religion, creed, or social and economic status,” the statement said.

Analysis

The LGBTQI issue has once again raised its head in Ghanaian society with the controversy surrounding Ghana’s UN vote.

Public sentiment continues to be against the issue but the government appears interested in walking a thin line when dealing with it.

The UN issue gives reason for those thinking that the LGBT bill might never pass through Parliament some fuel, because the NDC are showing a willingness to bow to international pressure, same as Akufo-Addo did.