![Ghana’s president, Nana Akufo-Addo, center, arrives for the opening session of the 33rd African Union Summit, at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Feb. 9, 2020 (AP Photo).](https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/l_ghana-democratic-erosion-08052021-1.jpg?w=519&h=259&crop=1)
Since taking office in 2017, Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo has demonstrated a pattern of heavy-handedness, authoritarianism and impunity that belies his carefully crafted global image of a debonair and progressive African leader. The latest controversy involves a bill, supported by members of Akufo-Addo’s administration and key religious institutions in the country, that would criminalize displays of same-sex affection and advocacy for LGBTQ rights, punishable by up to a decade in prison. Ghana has long had a mixed record on protecting LGBTQ rights, but for much of the past four years in particular, LGBTQ Ghanaians—as well as their allies and advocates—have […]