Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, the Minority Chief Whip, has warned that his colleagues in Parliament would take on any foreign mission that tries to attach support for the anti-LGBTQ+ Bill to the granting of visas to their nations.
Mr. Muntaka Mubarak said that Parliament would use all available measures, including diplomatic retribution, to guarantee that no member is silenced during the bill’s discussion and vote.
There are worries that nations that support homosexual rights may use threats of visa rejection to influence the bill’s passage or collapse.
Mr. Muntaka Mubarak, the Asawase MP discussed the possibility of a travel restriction for MPs who support the bill saying:
“We will put up the biggest of fights should we have the slightest indication that this is why one country or embassy is denying our members the opportunity to travel, visit or attend meetings. Obviously, we will insist on retaliation. Believe me, if we know that the American Embassy is doing this deliberately, then their business will not have any hearing in Parliament. If there are any government contract that has to do with an American company, then you can be sure that we will rally around and not also approve it.”
The Proper Sexual Human Rights and Ghanaians Family Values Bill, which is presently being debated in Parliament’s Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee, is supported by eight MPs, seven of them are from the minority side.
The bill has sparked considerable debate, with many people expressing differing opinions regarding some of its provisions.
However, as a result of the intense debates and pressure on the House to approve the bill, there have been rumors that MPs who support the bill may be denied certain rights from members of the international community.
Many individuals and organizations have sent memoranda in favor of the bill and to assist in its refinement.
A number of renowned legal, academic and civil society professionals have also filed documents challenging the legislation.
They argue in the memorandum that the Bill is an “impermissible invasion of the inviolability of human dignity.”
They also claimed that passing the Bill will put Ghana’s constitution and democracy at jeopardy.
Careful balance
Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, the Majority Leader, also said that Parliament will not be swayed by foreign ties to act against Ghana’s interests.
He referred to Ghana’s constitution’s Article 40 (a) as “the driving principle that should underpin our international relations.”
“In its dealings with other nations, the government shall promote and protect the interests of Ghana,” Mr. Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu quoted from the constitution.
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