Who are you to dictate to a sovereign nation? - Kwesi Pratt blasts US Ambassador over LGBT+

Kwesi Pratt Jnr, the Managing Editor of The Insight newspaper, has criticised the US Ambassador to Ghana, Virginia Palmer, for what he perceives as consistent interference in Ghana's internal affairs, especially regarding the controversial anti-LGBT+ bill.

Kwesi Pratt expressed his discontent with Ambassador Palmer's frequent responses to statements made by Ghanaian government officials.

Speaking on a panel discussion on Peace FM's Kokrokoo on March 5, 2024, he emphasised that ambassadors, including Palmer, should not overstep their boundaries by attempting to dictate the policies of a sovereign nation.

Pratt questioned the ambassador's authority to intervene in Ghana's domestic matters, stating:

"The US ambassador has no power to live in the country and dictate to us what to do and what not to do.

Can Ghana's ambassador to the US go to America and tell them what to do there? Can he hold a press conference and tell Joe Biden to stop the things he has been doing?

"Why? Are we still going back to colonisation? I am even shy of the whole thing," he said.

He urged Ghanaians to protect their autonomy, adding, "What I want to say is that whether you're gay or not, I don't care, but what I care about is for us to protect our freedom, not to allow the American ambassador to think she is more important than our president, for her to be giving our president instructions.

"It is horrible for you as an ambassador to be responding to our ministers and the president. Who are you? Who are you to dictate to us?" he lamented.

Virginia Palmer, in a post shared on X on Thursday, February 29, 2024, warned of dire consequences to Ghana's economy and international reputation if the bill is signed into law, a claim she has previously stated.

She indicated that the bill passed by parliament infringes on the basic human rights of homosexual Ghanaians and the right to freedom of speech.

"I am saddened because some of the smartest, most creative, most decent people I know are LGBT.

"The bill Parliament passed takes away not only their basic human rights but those of all Ghanaians because it undermines their constitutional rights to freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and freedom of the press," she wrote on X.

The ambassador added, "It will be bad for public order and public health. If enacted, it will also hurt Ghana's international reputation and Ghana's economy."

On Wednesday, February 28, 2024, the Parliament of Ghana passed the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill, widely known as the anti-LGBT+ bill.

The bill, currently awaiting presidential assent, proscribes lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) activities and criminalises their promotion, advocacy and funding.

Persons caught in these acts will be subjected to a six-month to three-year jail term, with promoters and sponsors facing a three to five-year jail term.





AM/SARA

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