Gay sex is a crime in the West African country and members of the LGBTQI (lesbian, gay, transgender, queer and intersex) community face widespread discrimination.
Rights group Rightify Ghana said the meeting was about empowering LGBTQI activists, including giving them para-legal training to document rights abuses. Police said they had detained the activists while they attended a conference. 'But the bail has been denied previously, so the prosecution can continue with their investigation.' 'The judge hasn't given a ruling, and has adjourned to give the ruling next week,' Julia Selman Ayetey, one of the group's attorneys said, after a hearing on Friday, adding she hoped bail would be granted at the next hearing on Tuesday. They were remanded in custody and after their arrest, the hashtag #ReleaseThe21 was trending on social media. The suspects in the recent case - 16 women and five men - were arrested for 'unlawful assembly' last month in Ho, in Ghana's southeastern Volta region.
