Shirt for Second Emancipation Day launched

Accra, (Greater Accra) 4th May ?99,

A shirt designed as the official attire for the Second Emancipation Day celebration in July, this year, was on Monday unveiled at the on-going joint WTO-ATA conference in Accra.

The "e-bond 2000" shirt has a black background with the symbol of an African mother and child printed in gold, depicting an eternal bond of love, heritage and strength connecting Africans everywhere "to our common ancestry and common destiny".

A statement issued by the Ministry of Tourism said the shirt would also be the official attire for

the 'Akwantukese' Festival of the people of New Juaben in the Eastern region on Tuesday, May Four, which forms part of the WTO-ATA conference.

The statement valued the shirt at 60,000 cedis or 25 dollars, adding that part of the proceeds from the sales would go into the construction of a ?monument of return? at Assin Manso in the Central region which is regarded as the home of the slave castles.

Mrs. Asie Ocansey, wife of Isaac Hayes, the renowned African-American musician, and President of the GoldTech LLC, an American-based technology and development consultancy designed the shirt. Isaac Hayes is royal of Ada under the stool name Nene Cartey Ocansey.

Mrs. Ocansey told newsmen that the shirt would be sold to celebrities in America to merchandise Ghana's tourism and the final emancipation in this millennium.

She said the shirt comes with a six-yard cloth for women, which also sells at 60,000 cedis, adding that from Friday, May 7, the two products would be sold on a special website on the Internet.