Tuesday 23 May 2017

Gandhi Statue Issue in Ghana University - Siby K. Joseph

Gandhi Statue  Issue in Ghana University 





The Hon. President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, on the occasion of  his visit to Ghana,   on June 14, 2016, unveiled a statue of Mahatma Gandhi  at the recreational quadrangle of  the University of Ghana's Legon campus which is situated about 12 kilometers northeast of the centre of Accra, the capital city. A group of four university teachers of African Studies, history and law disciplines of Ghana University and one of the founders of Accra (dot) Alt, which promotes alternative African music, video and art, on September 12, 2016, filed a petition for the removal of the statue of Gandhi before the honorable members of the University of Ghana Council and for the attention of the Chairman of Council, Prof. Kwamena Ahwoi who is government appointee for consideration. Subsequently, it was posted in the form of an online petition in https://www.change.org/ –the world’s platform for change.The sensational news about it appeared in a number of electronic and print media in Ghana and through out world. The Republic of Ghana wanted to end the acrimony continuing after the unveiling of the statue and finally decided to relocate the Gandhi statue at the University to a safer place. In a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, the Republic of Ghana on October 5, 2016 said “While acknowledging that human as he was, Mahatma Gandhi may have had his flaws, we must remember that people evolve. He inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world…… The government would, therefore want to relocate the statue from the University of Ghana to ensure its safety and to avoid the controversy on the Legon Campus being a distraction of our strong ties of friendship that has  existed over the years.”  The mainstream media propaganda after the decision created a feeling among common people that Gandhi was a racist. Therefore, it is significant to highlight the truth in the statement of the petitioners. It will be interesting to know why the petitioners have demanded for the removal of the statue of Gandhi from Ghana University and truth in their statements .

 For details read the article  written by Siby K. Joseph
Truth about the demand for removal of the Gandhi statue in Ghana University
 The link  of the article http://gandhinetwork.iecit.in/



No comments:

Post a Comment