Monday 10 October 2011

David Cameron's gay rights crusade hit Africa

Having announced at his Party Conference this year that his coalition government would legalise gay marriages, David Cameron  is now seeking to persuade those African countries where homosexuality is still a taboo to follow his lead, or else he would reduce aid to such countriesOne country which has already suffered the cut in aid is Malawi, and the report mentions Ghana as likely to be the next to suffer the cut in aid. As usual the weaker ones have been targeted. 



If David Cameron is dreaming to see a day when Ghana will see its first gay “marriage”,  he should think again. The bad news for Cameron is that the government of Ghana foresaw this coming.  A cabinet Minister is reported to have said earlier this year that Ghana would soon see a high powered delegation  to the shores of the country to lobby the government to soften its stance on gay rights in exchange of more aid. And that the government response would be take your money and we would take our hunger. David Cameron might find some friends from other African countries who will join his crusade but surely Ghana wouldn't be one on this issue. Ghana is left behind in some many things but gay rights is one thing Ghana would be proud to have been left behind in its advancement.



Ghana government does not persecute gay people, no one has been tried in any law court for being gay in Ghana. The debate so far is that the Ghanaian society frowns upon gay; the society feels that its unnatural and doesn't fall in line with its tradition, and if that is bad news for Mr.David Cameron so be it. It’s the same David Cameron who wishes to have British Bill of Rights to replace the European Human Rights because the latter doesn’t benefit the British society. Just what benefit does David Cameron think Ghana will get from legalising gay “marriage”? I can think of the £36 million UK aid, but if you poll Ghanaians on this issue I believe greater per cent of Ghanaians  would love to go hungry or school under tree than to receive £36 million in exchange of gay rights.

Is that a new foreign policy Britain wants to take to Africa? I don’t remember any country forcing Britain to adopt gay rights. Admittedly, gay issues are being talked about in some African countries these days than before. As the Africans continue to engage in public discourse they would find the right way of dealing with the issue. It is therefore very hypocritical on David Cameron to impose gay rights on African countries.  David Cameron should tread cautiously.




2 comments:

  1. You can't impose change on another culture from outside like that. My wife's Sierra Leonean, from a similar culture. It's well-known for the practice of female circumcision, and all the Western campaigning against it has achieved nothing; it's only what stupid white people say, after all. But I've seen women come here convinced that it's essential as uncircumcised women 'get an itch', and then change their minds when they saw that uncircumcised white woman are no more likely to be promiscuous than they were. Same with polygamy; my father-in-law had four wives, but you won't find many women in this generation who are prepared to be Number Two.

    There's no doubt that African cultures are very deeply homophobic, or that they feel threatened by European ideas. I'm not sure how far the situation is exacerbated by fundamentalist missionaries playing to existing prejudice, but I'm sure it happens.

    Outside pressure won't help. Left to themselves, I suspect that cultures will go through the same evolution as we have, but it'll be a slow process unfortunately.

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  2. Does Ghana really need £36 million British aid? ....corruption and evasion of Tax cost Ghana 10x the amount we get from Britain...

    By the way, Germany has begun offering political asylum to homosexuals from Ghana because they believe it's dangerous to be gay in Ghana. Maybe the British should do the same. I have many gay friends and very liberal towards the gay cause. Nobody has the right to attack anyone for being gay- that's both stupid and wrong but what right has the British PM has to force his view on a sovereign nation? For God sake, close your embassy, keep your aid and shut the fuck up!

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