Deputy Executive Director of the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), Sulemana Braimah, have said the “advice” by the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) President that journalist should take an anti-gay stance in their reportage is not appropriate. Speaking to a group of journalists who are on a two-week seminar on Reporting ECOWAS Integration, Mr Braimah said even though the MFWA is not undertaking any campaign to promote gay rights, they recognise that people must be allowed to express themselves in a way that does not violate the law and hence the directive is problematic. “Personally I don’t understand and I don’t know what the GJA meant [when it said] members should take anti-gay stance”, he said. Mr Braimah said he found the directive difficult to understand. “Is he saying journalists should advocate that gay people should be beaten up or arrested?” The President of GJA, Mr. Affail Monney, last week urged the local media to take an anti-gay stance. Speaking on Radio XYZ last week Friday, Mr. Monney maintained the comments were both his personal views as well as that of the GJA, which he said: “Has a sense of morality which is driving our stance and our stance is that we are against gayism and lesbianism because our laws frown on that. But Mr Braimah said that stance is not one that the MFWA would support in Ghana or any country in the sub-region. Last week, Professor Audrey Gadzekpo of the School of Communications, University of Ghana, also said on Top Story she found the appeal by the GJA president "bizzare" and "wrong-footed". She said it was the responsibility of journalists to protect the rights of the vulnerable and marginalized in society. The practice of journalism needed broad-minded and critical thinkers to present thoroughly investigated issues of public concern, she insisted.