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ACCRA \u2014 Ghana\u2019s parliament on Friday approved a new bill that criminalizes the so-called promotion of LGBTQ activity, part of a broader crackdown on sexual minorities in West Africa.The Human Sexual Rights and Family Values\u00a0Bill, 2025, passed by a voice vote after the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee unanimously recommended its adoption, first deputy speaker Bernard Ahiafor said.The bill was introduced\u00a0last year\u00a0shortly after President\u00a0John Dramani Mahama\u00a0took office. Lawmakers from Mahama\u2019s political party, the National Democratic Congress, had been urged by religious leaders and other supporters of the bill to vote on it, and Mahama will now face pressure to sign it.Lawmakers passed an earlier version of the bill in 2024, under Mahama\u2019s predecessor, President\u00a0Nana Akufo-Addo, but it faced legal challenges and Akufo-Addo never signed it into law.The bill approved\u00a0on Friday\u00a0maintains the existing penalty of up to three years in prison for same-sex sexual acts. It also bans \u201cfunding, sponsorship or promotion\u201d of LGBTQ acts, with prison terms ranging from three to five years. And it introduces a \u201cduty to report\u201d prohibited LGBTQ acts to a police officer or other authorities, with violators facing up to three years behind bars.<\/p>\n
By Nana Davis Mac\u2011Iyalla, Executive Director, Interfaith Diversity Network of West Africa (IDNOWA)
\nToday, Ghana\u2019s Parliament passed the amended Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, 2025 \u2014 a bill that continues to criminalise LGBTQ+ people and restrict the work of organisations, advocates, and community members who support them. Although the amendments now protect lawyers, journalists, and medical professionals who offer essential services, the bill still poses a profound threat to the safety, dignity, and freedom of LGBTQ+ Ghanaians.
\nAt IDNOWA, we recognise this moment as a critical test of our collective resilience. Our mission has always been clear: to build inclusive faith spaces, protect human dignity, and strengthen the rights and wellbeing of sexual and gender minorities across West Africa and the diaspora. Today\u2019s decision does not change that mission \u2014 it deepens it.
\nAs this news settles across our communities, I return to a truth that has carried our people through generations of hardship: Hope is not the absence of struggle \u2014 it is the refusal to surrender our humanity.
\nWe come from ancestors who survived systems designed to break them. Their resilience flows through us. And today, as the law turns against our communities, that ancestral refusal to give up must guide us again.<\/p>\n
IDNOWA\u2019s Perspective on the Path Ahead
\nParliament\u2019s vote is not the final step. The bill now moves to the President for assent, and constitutional challenges may continue. IDNOWA will remain vigilant, working with legal partners, regional allies, and international networks to monitor developments and defend the rights of our communities.
\nOur commitment is grounded in our organisational values:<\/p>\n
Dignity: Every person is sacred.
\nInclusion: Faith must never be used as a weapon.
\nSolidarity: We rise by holding one another.
\nJustice: No law can erase our humanity.<\/p>\n
These values will continue to guide our advocacy, our partnerships, and our community\u2011care work across 11 West African countries and the diaspora.<\/p>\n
How Our Communities Can Stay Safe
\nIn moments like this, fear is real \u2014 but fear must not isolate us. Safety is a collective practice, and IDNOWA encourages all community members to take the following steps:
\n1. Strengthen Digital Security<\/p>\n
Use encrypted messaging apps.
\nAvoid sharing identifiable information online.
\nEnable two\u2011factor authentication on all accounts.<\/p>\n
2. Protect Physical Safety<\/p>\n
Avoid gatherings that could be misinterpreted under the new law.
\nMove in trusted networks.
\nKeep emergency contacts and safe locations accessible.<\/p>\n
3. Seek Support from Exempt Professionals
\nThe amended bill protects:<\/p>\n
Lawyers providing legal representation
\nJournalists reporting professionally
\nMedical and mental\u2011health professionals offering care<\/p>\n
You can still access:<\/p>\n
Legal advice
\nMedical treatment
\nCounselling and psychosocial support<\/p>\n
without those professionals facing punishment.
\n4. Document Violations Safely
\nIf you experience harassment or threats:
\n See Also<\/p>\n
Record details privately and securely.
\nShare only with trusted organisations or legal professionals.
\nAvoid posting sensitive evidence publicly.<\/p>\n
5. Stay Connected
\nIDNOWA encourages community members to:<\/p>\n
Check on one another
\nShare verified information
\nBuild small circles of care
\nParticipate in virtual support spaces
\nReach out to trusted leaders and allies<\/p>\n
Isolation increases vulnerability. Community increases safety.<\/p>\n
How We Continue to Resist
\nIDNOWA\u2019s work has always been rooted in faith\u2011based solidarity, community empowerment, and human\u2011rights advocacy. This moment calls us to deepen that work.
\nWe resist by:<\/p>\n
Telling our stories
\nSupporting one another
\nDocumenting injustices
\nStrengthening alliances across faiths, professions, and borders
\nEngaging legal pathways
\nRefusing to internalise shame or fear<\/p>\n
Oppressive systems thrive when we are hopeless. They depend on our exhaustion. They depend on our silence. But our sacred relationships \u2014 to ourselves, our communities, our ancestors, and the Divine \u2014 can light the path forward.<\/p>\n
A Final Word of Courage ACCRA \u2014 Ghana\u2019s parliament on Friday approved a new bill that criminalizes the so-called promotion of LGBTQ activity, part of a broader crackdown on sexual minorities in West Africa.The Human Sexual Rights and Family Values\u00a0Bill, 2025, passed by a voice vote after the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee unanimously recommended its adoption, first deputy speaker …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1203,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_3659155457675267_172535249438148":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1202","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-news"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill.jpg",1080,720,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-768x512.jpg",618,412,true],"large":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-1024x683.jpg",618,412,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill.jpg",1080,720,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill.jpg",1080,720,false],"tie-small":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-110x75.jpg",110,75,true],"tie-medium":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-310x165.jpg",310,165,true],"tie-large":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-310x205.jpg",310,205,true],"slider":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-660x330.jpg",660,330,true],"big-slider":["https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Ghana-parliament-approves-cruel-sweeping-anti-LGBTQ-bill-1050x525.jpg",1050,525,true]},"author_info":{"info":["Editor"]},"category_info":"News<\/a>","tag_info":"News","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1202","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1202"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1202\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xavieradioug.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nToday\u2019s news is heavy. It is painful. It is unjust. But it is not the end of our story.
\nWe have survived worse. We have organised under harsher conditions. We have built community in the shadows and in the light. We have held each other through storms meant to erase us.
\nAnd we will continue.
\nHope is not na\u00efve. Hope is our inheritance. Hope is our strategy. Hope is our resistance.
\nAs IDNOWA, we remain unwavering in our commitment to protect the dignity, safety, and humanity of all LGBTQ+ people across West Africa and the diaspora. We will continue to advocate, to organise, and to stand with our communities \u2014 no matter how dark the moment feels.
\nOur ancestors refused to give up. We honour them by refusing to give up on each other.<\/p>\n\n
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