Amnesty has argued the Children’s Act in the 1992 constitution clearly defines a child as an individual under the age of 18 and prohibits forcing a child into marriage.

In a statement, Amnesty therefore urged the police service to ensure that those accountable face the full extent of the law.

The organisation commended the efforts of the police, the Ministry of Gender, Children, and Social Protection, and the Ministry of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs in ensuring the safety of the girl and her mother.

The human rights organisation has further implored all governmental and civil organizations devoted to safeguarding children’s rights, especially young girls, to collaborate in advocating for the eradication of child marriage in Ghana.

“Ghanaian law acknowledges customary marriages but firmly rejects the practice of child marriages under the guise of culture or tradition. It is imperative to halt traditional practices that infringe upon the rights of young girls, hindering their ability to fulfill their potential.

“Instead, we must uphold the principles enshrined in the laws of Ghana and ensure the protection of all children’s rights, both domestically and internationally,” the statement appealed.

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Below is the full statement:

This comes after the Commission of Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) advocated for a revision of sections of the proposed promotion of Proper Human Rights and Ghanaian Family Value Bill 2021 also known as the Anti-LGBTQ Bill.

The Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference has also voiced out their support for the bill and also emphasized that criminalizing sexual orientation of individuals is wrong.

Speaking on Starr FM, the Country Director, Genevieve Partington said the Bill is against the Constitution of Ghana and must be rejected.

“First of all the bill does not even define who an LGBT person is, there is no definition. So how are you going to identify who an LGBT person is?

“There is a certain part of the bill that talks about romantic displays of affection. How do you define romantic affection between the same sex? So do you see two men holding hands apart of the LGBT community? These are some of the concerns that we have raised from the bill and so many other parts that we have issues with,” madam Patington stated.

“So it is going to bring homophobia in Ghana” adding that now that Ghana gives visa on arrival tourists may be wrongly arrested.

“Persons suspected to be LGBT are being forced from their houses, landlords and landlords are going through a forced eviction process. We really have to be concerned with this bill as Ghanaians and understand that it will not just affect LGBT community.

“I have always said that Amnesty International completely rejects this bill, it should not exist and criminalizing persons for an activity that happens in their bedroom is actually against international human rights laws. So we should not even be considering it.   

“It is against the 1992 Constitution so all these things we have to consider. For Amnesty International should the bill be passed we will take it to court. As we are allowed to so that is the agenda we have,” she added.

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Almost a year since the tournament began, the human rights group claims progress has “largely stalled”.

It says “remedy and justice for hundreds of thousands of workers who suffered abuses linked to the tournament remain elusive”.

In a new report titled ‘A Legacy in Jeopardy’, the organisation concludes that reforms have been “weakly-enforced” with abuses “still continuing”.

However, Qatar’s government responded by insisting that the World Cup “accelerated labour reforms, creating a significant and lasting tournament legacy”.

Fifa said it was “undeniable that significant progress has taken place”, but accepted that “heightened efforts are needed to ensure the reforms benefit all workers in the country”.

Controversy over the human cost of building the infrastructure required for the 2022 tournament in the gulf state’s extreme summer heat has hung over the event for years.

In 2021 it was revealed that 6,500 migrant workers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka had died in Qatar since it won its bid to host the World Cup in 2010.

However, the Qatari government said not all the deaths recorded were of people working on World Cup-related projects, and that many could have died from old age or other natural causes. Before the tournament, authorities claimed there had only been three ‘work-related’ deaths on actual stadium construction sites since work began in 2014.

But during the event, organisers said the number of migrant workers who died on World Cup-related projects was “between 400 and 500”.

Qatar had introduced labour reforms from 2017, with more protection for workers, a minimum wage, and the dismantling of the controversial ‘kafala’ sponsorship system, but there have been long-standing concerns over the implementation of the changes.

Despite pressure from campaigners and European football associations, as well as generating a record £6bn from the World Cup, Fifa resisted calls for a compensation fund for the families of workers who had died, instead setting up a ‘legacy fund’ directed at education.

Amid calls for the creation of a Migrant Worker Centre in Doha, Fifa President Gianni Infantino announced plans for a permanent office for the International Labour Organization – a UN agency.

‘Too little has been done’, Amnesty says

Amnesty acknowledges that it has learned from migrant workers that most can now leave the country freely, and noted advances in the enforcement of laws related to working in heat. But it said that “beyond this, [workers] painted a bleak picture of lost momentum and continued exploitation”.

“Qatar’s continued failure to properly enforce or strengthen its pre-World Cup labour reforms puts any potential legacy for workers in serious peril”, said Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International’s Head of Economic Social Justice.

“From illegal recruitment fees to unpaid wages, hundreds of thousands of migrant workers lost their money, health and even their lives while Fifa and Qatar tried to deflect and deny responsibility” he added.

“A year on from the tournament, too little has been done to right all these wrongs, but the workers who made the 2022 World Cup possible must not be forgotten.”

Amnesty said details of the promised tournament legacy fund “remain vague”, and that while workers no longer legally require a ‘no-objection certificate’ from employers to change jobs, in practice many must still secure some form of permission. It added that “huge barriers remain” for workers trying to access remedy through the justice system.

Fifa told BBC Sport it was conducting an independent assessment on “whether additional steps would be recommended in view of further strengthening the tournament’s legacy for migrant workers.”

“International experts and trade union representatives […] have repeatedly recognised that major steps forward have occurred in the labour rights sphere” it said.

“It is undeniable that significant progress has taken place, and it is equally clear that the enforcement of such transformative reforms takes time and that heightened efforts are needed to ensure the reforms benefit all workers in the country.”

Qatar insists upon ‘significant and lasting legacy’

In a statement, the Qatari government told the BBC: “The World Cup accelerated labour reforms in Qatar, creating a significant and lasting tournament legacy.

“Qatar now leads the region on workers’ rights and labour reforms, setting an example for other countries on how a system can be successfully overhauled.

“The region’s first non-discriminatory minimum wage, 97% of all salaries protected through the Wage Protection System, the removal of barriers to change jobs, a simplified complaints mechanism and easier access to justice, stricter enforcement including a crackdown on the payment of illegal recruitment fees, increased awareness of workers’ rights, region-leading health and safety standards on-site and in accommodations, and regular health screenings to identify underlying conditions.

“One year on from the World Cup, Qatar’s commitment to labour reform remains as strong as ever as we strive to establish a world-leading labour system.”

The Ningo Prampram Member of Parliament has said their stance on the bill will not deter parliament from passing the bill for the greater good of the people of Ghana.

On Wednesday, all 275 MPs unanimously consented to the passage of the controversial Promotion of Proper Sexual Human Rights and the Ghanaian Family Values Bill 2021 at a debate in Parliament.

The law seeks to criminalise the practice of LGBTQ and advocacy of same.

But Country Director for Amnesty International-Ghana, Genevieve Partington has said she believes some works still need to be done as the bill in its current form is discriminatory and will promote hate crime when passed.

However, Mr George has said all the work that needs to be done on the bill has been completed in its 18-page document.

“They keep talking about human rights. They should come and show us which part of the bill has issues because we have read the Constitution. So which right are they talking about? America or Ghana right they should show us which UN document supports homosexuality.

“Homosexuality is madness and if they [Amnesty] wants to celebrate that madness, they should do so where they want but not in Ghana,” he fumed on Accra-based Okay FM.

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This comes after a unanimous consent by all 275 MPs passage of the controversial Promotion of Proper Sexual Human Rights and the Ghanaian Family Values Bill 2021 at a debate on the floor on Wednesday, July 5.

They maintain their stance against the document will foster towards individuals who identify – in any way or form – as part of the minority groups adding that the Bill requires further amendments.

The law seeks to crimalise the practice of LGBTQ and advocacy of same.

But Country Director for Amnesty International-Ghana, Genevieve Partington, expressed the organization’s concerns.

For example, “I’m an ally, I’m identified as an ally, it also said from the Bill that, if you are an ally of LGBTQ community, that means you are living amongst people who have a different sexual orientation. I don’t see how that affects my life in any way,” she told Accra-based CitiNews.

“How does a man sleeping with a man within closed doors in their bedroom affect my life?”

Meanwhile, the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Committee of Parliament has recommended that the House passes the controversial Proper Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, 2021.

According to the Committee, the majority of Ghanaians are in favour of the legislation.

While admitting that the bill had “significant human rights concerns”, the Committee informed the House that it petitioned the Attorney-General for its opinion.

The 18-page document which was signed by the Committee’s Chairperson, Kwame Anyimadu-Antwi, had been subjected to the amendments proffered by the Committee.

Mr Anyimadu-Antwi indicated that the decision was reached after considering the advice of the Attorney General.

The killings showed the attackers’ “utter disregard for human life”, a new report by the organisation released on Thursday says.

The violence in Tole area of Gimbi district saw farming villages populated by ethnic Amharas targeted.

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It has been blamed on the armed group the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), but authorities have also been criticised for failing to respond fast enough to the violence.

Government forces arrived hours after the attackers had left despite being told about the attack much earlier, according to witnesses cited in the report.

The OLA has denied carrying out the attacks, which it said was the work of a militia group set up by the government.

Amnesty called the Tole killings “a callous massacre” and it was followed – two weeks later – by similar attacks in a different district in the region.

Officials vowed to take measures in the wake of the two attacks and promised to conduct investigations.

But there are already some who have raised questions about the independence of a government-led probe.

Amnesty International made the request in a letter to Fifa president Gianni Infantino.

The letter states: “Until all workers are compensated, the tournament cannot be truly celebrated.”

The sum suggested is equal to the 2022 World Cup prize money fund.

It is estimated up to 30,000 migrant labourers have been used on projects to build seven stadiums for the finals in Qatar, as well as a new airport, new metro and new roads.

Amnesty, along with other human rights organisations and fans’ groups, have called on Fifa not only to support workers who have died or been injured, but who have had pay withheld by employers or been forced to pay recruitment fees in order to secure work.

Amnesty International’s UK chief executive Sacha Deshmukh said there was a role to play for the England team, manager Gareth Southgate and the Football Association to put pressure on Fifa to act.

“Thousands of migrant workers have been exploited and many have tragically died to make this World Cup possible, so we hope the FA and Gareth Southgate and the players will back this innovative scheme to secure much-needed compensation for long-suffering workers’ families,” he said.

“Nothing can bring dead workers back to life or restore the dignity of those who were trapped in conditions amounting to modern-day slavery during Qatar’s World Cup building boom, but a Fifa workers’ fund would still be an important move.”

Fifa said it was assessing the programme proposed by Amnesty and was already looking at ways to compensate workers in association with the organising committee.

“Through the recruitment fee reimbursement scheme, for example, both Fifa World Cup and non-Fifa World Cup workers have received payments of a total $22.6m (£18m) as of December 2021, with an additional $5.7m (£4.5m) committed by contractors,” it said.

Qatar’s World Cup organisers added they had “worked tirelessly” with international groups for the rights of workers on stadiums and other tournament projects.

A spokesperson for the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy said: “Significant improvements have been made across accommodation standards, health and safety regulations, grievance mechanisms, healthcare provision, and reimbursements of illegal recruitment fees to workers.”

The human rights organisation in a public statement on Monday said the Bill gravely contravenes the principles of equality and non-discrimination, the rights to freedom of expression, association and privacy, and the prohibition of torture enshrined in the 1992 Constitution of Ghana and international human rights treaties ratified by the country.

More specifically, Amnesty said the bill denies LGBTI persons the human dignity guaranteed to all persons under section 15 of the country’s Constitution.

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“At a time when other countries around the world, including Angola and Gabon are lifting discriminatory laws targeting people for their real or perceived sexual orientation, Ghana must not go in the opposite direction,” the statement said.

“The Ghanaian authorities are encouraged to protect equality and non-discrimination and other fundamental human rights of all people in Ghana,” it said.

Amnesty’s condemnation of the bill follows a similar statement by United Nations experts which urged the government to reject a proposed ‘family values’ bill, saying it seeks to establish a system of state-sponsored discrimination and violence against the LGBTI community in the country.

Check out the statement below:

Meanwhile, the ‘Proper Human Sexual and Ghanaian Family Values Bill’ 2021 also known as the Anti LGBTQI+ bill seeks to criminalise the advocacy and practice of homosexuality in Ghana.

It prescribes that people of the same sex who engage in sexual activity could be fined or jailed for between three to five years.

The Bill is a private members’ legislation being sponsored by eight Members of Parliament (MP); seven from the National Democratic Congress and one from the New Patriotic Party.

The MPs are Samuel Nartey George, Ningo-Prampram MP; Emmanuel Bedzrah, Ho West MP; Della Adjoa Sowah, Kpando MP; John Ntim Fordjour, Assin South MP and Alhassan Sayibu Suhuyini, Tamale North MP.

The rest are Helen Adjoa Ntoso, Krachi West MP; Rita Naa Odoley Sowah, La Dadekotopon MP and Rockson Nelson Dafeamekpor, South Dayi, MP.