Afenyo-Markin withdraws proposed amendments to anti-gay bill

The Deputy Majority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has withdrawn his proposed amendments to the bill on the promotion of proper human sexual rights and Ghanaian family values.

This comes after the House voted against two of the proposals which demanded a replacement of imprisonment with community service for persons found culpable of LGBT activities.

Alexander Afenyo-Markin also withdrew his new amendment which was seeking mandatory counselling on human sexual rights and Ghanaian family values as a post-conviction sentence.

The anti-gay bill has been controversial since it was first introduced in Parliament. Human rights groups have said that the bill would violate the rights of LGBT people in Ghana

On Thursday, February 8, Parliament approved a three-to-five-year jail term for individuals who intentionally promoted or sponsored LGBTQ+ activities.

Those caught in the act could face a minimum of 6 months and a maximum of 3 years in prison.

During the amendment process of the bill promoting proper human sexual rights and Ghanaian family values, Mr. Afenyo-Markin argued that punitive measures would not contribute to the rehabilitation of the offenders.

He expressed concern about the state of the country’s prisons and their inability to provide the necessary rehabilitation for offenders.

The Effutu lawmaker proposed replacing a minimum two-month imprisonment sentence with a minimum one-month community service for individuals found guilty of LGBTQ+ activities.