Editorial: Ghana must open her eyes to the growing sex tourism

In yesterday's The Statesman, the Minister for Tourism and Diasporan Relations, Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey called for all to get involved in condemning sex tourism.

He is asking for all service providers in the leisure industry to get involved in a concerted attack against the sex trade. For instance, the Minister stated that if a guest brings a juvenile to his hotel room and his actions smack of paedophilic intent, the onus lies on the hotel personnel to draw the attention of the necessary authorities.


We would go a step higher and harder to say Parliament should consider the possibility of a law to find criminally liable, hotels that do not report suspicious guests who may be breaching Ghana"s sex laws. This may seem harsh on our efforts to attract international tourists, but, we believe the country runs the risk of being over-run by the kind of sex trade that has hit Asian countries and elsewhere, including the Netherlands, Philippines, Thailand, India, Cambodia, Cuba, Costa Rica, Jamaica and Ukraine.


A particular kind of sex tourism that is growing in Accra is male prostitution. Labadi, Osu, Adabraka and Kokomlemle are becoming notorious with rent boys. These are where foreign men come to find the young male sex workers known commonly as rent boys.


What is being inadvertently painted in Ghana is a very bleak picture of predominantly boys from poor backgrounds, caught up in a world of drug addiction, quick bucks and the ever-present threat of sexually transmitted diseases. Worst of all, several of these prostitutes begin when they're still children.


Sex tourism is tourism, partially or fully for the purpose of having sex, usually with prostitutes or minors. Sex tourism destinations are increasingly poor, stable countries, where poverty drives people into prostitution. Ghana, Senegal and the Gambia are becoming notoriously popular countries in West Africa for sex tourism. Ghana, we fear, is growing unchecked since the last decade or so to become home to a number of "sexpats” who have emigrated here to avail of the cheap local currency and the opportunities for inexpensive sexual services afforded them by Ghana's low standard of living.

Some sex tourists organise themselves around a number of web sites where they boast about their conquests, share photos of their sex partners, discuss tips on finding prostitutes at the best possible rates in foreign countries and how to avoid detection both at home and abroad. Ghana, we regret to say, has now won herself an unenviable place on the 'Where To Go’ list for the sex tourist.


Although most countries with a major sex tourism industry are working on attempting to reduce or eliminate sex tourism, there is, so far, no direct policy effort on the part of the Ghanaian Government to check this undesirable trade. That is why we believe the call by the Tourism Minister should be taken up seriously by President Kufuor’s cabinet.


What we, at The Statesman, find most worrying about the growing sex tourism in Ghana is the territorial incursions being made here in Ghana by paedophiles, especially from the West. Paedophilia is already a serious local problem. If in doubt, visit any Circuit Court in the morning and see the number of Ghanaian men being remanded in custody on charges of defilement. Reported child rape cases are increasing dangerously in Ghana.


Some paedophiles use sex tourism to have access to sex with children that is not easily available in their home country. We may, as a nation choose to bury our head in the beach sand, but the fact is that Ghana is becoming a notorious destination for these paedophiles. There are, of course, existing laws in the Criminal Code, but The Statesman believes a lot more can be done. Several western countries have gone as far as enacting laws with extraterritorial reach to punish citizens who engage in sex with minors in other countries. Unfortunately, these crimes usually go undiscovered.


Ghana should be mindful of slipping into the human-flesh trade. It is a trade that includes not only sex, but paedophilia, human slavery and even organ harvesting. Parts of Accra is turning to take the shape of the zoos of Patpong Road and Soi Cowboy in Bangkok's red-light district. Of course, Thailand’s situation is extreme but it was not like that some decades back. When the transnational military exercise Cope Tiger 2002 brought 1,100 foreign troops to Thailand - including many American soldiers – the Thai government's Interior Ministry enacted special legislation to help the soldiers enjoy Thailand's sex industry. The 2 a.m. closing time for most bars was extended, and sex workers and others involved in the industry were warned against raising prices.

This a country infamous for transvestites. A story is told in Amsterdam of an African tourist in the red light district - a paying customer - who emerged from the room of a Thai prostitute. Alarm bells were ringing everywhere, and police were running towards the room of the Thai pro. (All of the rooms have emergency alarms.) Apparently, the customer was angry that the seemingly female prostitute he had paid was, in fact, a man.


We need to more than chip away at the child sex trade here and, generally, sex tourism not only through tougher laws and police action, but by changing social factors and attitudes that have abetted the boom in sex tourism in Ghana.


Anti-sex tourism campaigners, like The Statesman, must be led by Government and train their sights on educating and warning Ghanaian families whose children are potential victims. We must also target potential sex tourists from Western countries - where offenders largely come from - and the children themselves.


The ultimate solution to the problem lies in changing human attitudes and human values. It also means encouraging a less emotive but informed public debate about the sex industry. Changing laws does not necessarily change human behaviour. Essentially, we need to, as a people, grow up from our naïve, blanket regard for every Obroni.


Reported cases include an Australian Catholic priest who raised funds for a vocational training project for boys and who abused them sexually, and a US Mormon who ran a paedophile network.