Journalist in Ghana Declares War on Gays Leading to Violence and Forced displacement
- nathan334
- 13 minutes ago
- 2 min read
May 28, 2025. Melanie Nathan.
A journalist from Wa, Ghana Wa Journalist Declares 'War' on LGBTQI Community, Calls for Local Authority Support: Yeliminga Naa Abayema, a journalist with Wa-based Tungsung Radio, has sparked outrage after declaring "war" on the LGBTQI community in Wa, Upper West Region of Ghana. In multiple videos shared on TikTok, Abayema announced, “Now I have declared war. It’s a war, Abayema versus homosexuals.
Abayema versus gays and lesbians, and I will be dedicating 5 or 10 minutes each day on the radio to bash you with insults.”
Abayema further revealed that he and others have been engaging in harmful prayers and curses, wishing misfortune on LGBTQI individuals both in this life and the afterlife.
He specifically threatened LGBTQI individuals who work as noodle vendors and event MCs, warning them of consequences. Abayema also appealed to local authorities, including Wa Naa, Ya Naa, Upper West Regional Chief Imam, Regional Minister, and municipal and district assembly leaders, to support his campaign against the LGBTQI community.
Anti-LGBTQI campaigns are not new to Wa. In July 2021, the Wa Naa imposed a ban on all LGBTQI-related activities and later publicly praised political figures for their actions against the LGBTQI community. According to local queer community leaders, an anti-LGBTQI task force was also established by local authorities to monitor individuals perceived to be LGBTQI and their activities. Among the five regions in northern Ghana, Wa, alongside Tamale in the Northern Region, is known for having traditional authorities and media personalities actively involved in anti-LGBTQI campaigns. This rhetoric has resulted in actual violence, people living in fear and trying to flee the region.
This Journalist should be pre-warned that if the Ghanaian government adheres to his call or does nothing to protect the community from such calls for violence, and fails to shut it down, with accountability by the persons calling for such violence, the International community of human rights and tribunals will ensure accountability and justice and that those who participate in such egregious human rights abuses, will be denied entry visas into global venues. That said the Ghanaian government tends to be complicit by allowing such harm to ensue with impunity.
By MELANIE NATHAN, ED African Human Rights Coalition, EXPERT WITNESS FOR LGBT ASYLUM SEEKERS FROM GHANA and other countries on the African Continent commissionermnathan@gmail.com | nathan@africanHRC.org
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