Ghana to Rule on LGBTQ Bill Legality After Vote, Citi FM Reports
(Bloomberg) -- Ghana’s Supreme Court will decide on the constitutionality of a controversial anti-LGBTQ bill after next month’s presidential elections, Citi FM reported.
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The draft law, which calls for anyone who identifies as LGBTQ to be jailed for up to three years, is facing legal challenges, including one by lawyer Richard Dela Sky. A panel of seven Supreme Court judges will rule on Sky’s suit on Dec. 18, according to Citi FM.
The two main candidates vying for the presidency in the Dec. 7 voted have expressed support for the bill, which lawmakers passed in February. Some of the nation’s civil society groups have argued against it.
If endorsed, the punitive law would deepen discrimination against queer people and criminalize family members or colleagues who don’t report people they know to be gay. The law may also jeopardize $3.8 billion of World Bank funding over the next six years, Ghana’s Finance Ministry said in March.
The Supreme Court has faced criticism for delaying its decision, including from parliament, which announced earlier this month that it’s resubmitting the bill to President Nana Akufo-Addo for his signature — the last step before it becomes law.
Alban Bagbin, the parliamentary speaker, has argued the Supreme Court case doesn’t have to be concluded for the bill to be enacted.
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