The Anglican Archbishop and Primate of West Africa, Cyril Kobina Ben-Smith, has spoken out against the impending law in Ghana criminalising the promotion of LGBTQ+ activities, despite his previous support for such legislation. 

‘The Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill‘ was passed by Parliament earlier in the year and contains provisions that punish the “willing promotion of LGBTQ+ activities” with a prison sentence of up to five years. It also includes the criminalisation of same-sex relations and a “duty to report” LGBTQ+ acts to authorities, also punishable by a sentence of up to five years. President John Dramani Mahama is yet to sign the Bill into law, but is facing pressure from many religious leaders.

However, speaking with the BBC, Archbishop Cyril Kobina Ben-Smith declared his grievance with the new law: “Our point in our province is very clear: we do not support the criminalization of gay persons. The whole concept of… LGBT people, it’s not new here. They have lived in this country for a long time, and we’ve lived with them. They’ve never been a problem.”

Previously, the Archbishop had been in favour of the criminalisation of LGBTQ+ people. In 2021, he led Ghanaian bishops in supporting a bill that would have enforced a five-year prison term on anyone who identifies as LGBTQ+. 

In 2024, the Archbishop signed the following statement reported by The Guardian, “Born the belief that the practice is unbiblical and ungodly. We see LGBT+ as unrighteousness in the sight of God and therefore will do anything within our powers and mandate to ensure that the bill comes into fruition… Leviticus 20:13 clearly declares that a male lying with a fellow male is an abomination and punishable by death.”

 

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The statement further included, “The church does not condemn persons of homosexuality tendencies but absolutely condemns the sinful acts and activities they perform.”

However, speaking in the recent BBC interview, Ben-Smith spoke of a different stance on LGBTQ+ relations, saying “We believe that God created male and female” when speaking about the Anglican Church’s more “traditional views”.

When the reporter asked about gay Christians in Ghana, Ben-Smith added that LGBTQ+ people are “all children of God”, and that “God loves them”.

When questioned about Ghanaians seeking asylum in the UK because they fear violence following the introduction of these new laws and the Church’s endorsement, the Archbishop responded, “That’s why we’re making this point very clear. The church does not support people to be criminalized.”

While the stance of Archbishop Cyril Kobina Ben-Smith appears to have softened, his position remains vague and confusing regarding the rights of LGBTQ+ people in Ghana.