Being a homosexual in Ghana is one of the worst things a person can be. Apart from having to deal with crappy conditions of living and doing your best not to get killed over someone’s negligence, you have to deal with people who claim to hate you getting all up in your business. Or all up in your a$$, so to speak.
With all the enlightenment going round in the world, Ghanaians still remain some of the most homophobic group of people. Blame it on men of God reminding them daily of the tragedy that befell Sodom and Gomorrah in Biblical fairytales, or a sheer lack of ability to accept that people come in different hues and not everyone can like the same thing. Homosexuals in Ghana are fished out and abused for their sexuality, making them fear for their lives in their own communities.
People believe they have the right to assault another human being and get away with it just because the person is gay. As a result, many Ghanaian homosexuals remain lurking in the closets and some even pretend to be as homophobic as their peers even though deep down their heart of hearts, they are ardent man-romancers who would not hesitate to chop down some hard man a$$ if no one was watching. Because of this attitude, most gay people do not feel safe and would rather live elsewhere in the world.
Such is the case of one Sadat, who had to flee Ghana in 2015 after being assaulted severely by members of a violent anti-LGBTI group called the “Safety Empire”. After having his house burnt down and attacking his family all in a bid to know his whereabouts, Sadat had no option but to flee the country for dear life and seek asylum amongst a more tolerating group of people. However, he was not so fortunate as he arrived at the US-Mexico border only to be detained by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
His family sent a video as evidence of the threats on his life by the “Safety Empire” but the US authorities dismissed the evidence as insufficient grounds to grant him asylum, thereby denying him parole and processing him for deportation. But Amnesty International has intervened, insisting that it would be a tragic infringement of Sadat’s human rights should he be deported back to Ghana.
In a statement, they said “We’re not going to stand by whilst Sadat is treated in this way. We’re calling on US authorities to immediately halt any deportation proceedings against Sadat… In addition, we also want the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement to release Sadat on parole pending the resolution of his asylum claim and for the Department for Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General to review apparent due process violations in the handling of Sadat’s asylum claim, and his ill-treatment in detention”.
The appeal was rejected in November last year and Sadat has gone on two hunger strikes to protest against the prolonged detention and poor conditions. Amnesty International insists that parole is granted Sadat as no person should be denied asylum if their personal safety is in question.