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A University of Sussex DPhil thesis Available online via Sussex Research Online: http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/ This thesis is protected by copyright which belongs to the author. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Please visit Sussex Research Online for more information and further details The Development of a Truth Regime on ‘the Human’: Human Rights in the Gold Coast (1945-57) Isidore Bonabom Doctor of Philosophy in Human Rights University of Sussex November 2011 i Table of contents Statement iii Summary iv Acknowledgments v Abbreviations and acronyms vii Maps of the Gold Coast, British West Africa and post-independent Ghana ix Chapter 1: Introduction . 1.1. Human rights: An idea in need of defence 1 . 1.2. The Gold Coast as the case study 3 . 1.3. Human rights in Africa: Current approaches in the literature 6 . 1.4. Collecting ‘the human rights texts’ for this research project 11 . 1.5. The ‘human rights texts’ as a window into human rights discourse 14 . 1.6. Outline of the thesis 17 . 1.7. Note on spelling and terminology 19 Chapter 2: Human rights as a truth regime . 2.1. Introduction 22 . 2.2. The human rights idea as an expression of ‘the human’ 24 . 2.3. An alternative understanding of human rights history 31 . 2.4. The ethnocentric thesis 34 . 2.5. The human rights concept as a truth regime 38 . 2.6. The UDHR as a fundamentally ambiguous proclamation and Cold War politics 44 . 2.7. Human dignity as a central reference point 47 . 2.8. Conclusion 51 Chapter 3: Discursive creation of the Gold Coast as colony, protectorate and mandated territory . 3.1. Introduction 52 . 3.2. Discursive ‘creation’ of the Gold Coast 53 . 3.3. The Gold Coast colonial administration 60 . 3.4. The issue of British ‘protected personhood’ 69 . 3.5. Nationalism as a discourse against colonial rule 73 . 3.6. Conclusion 77 Chapter 4: The ‘human being’ of human rights in the politics of difference . 4.1. Introduction 79 . 4.2. Rights-bearing citizens in the politics of difference in the Gold Coast 80 . 4.3. The ‘racialised other’ in the politics of education and anti-colonial resistance 84 . 4.4. Marginalised constituencies in the politics of rights 96 . 4.5. Negotiating the meaning of dignity and equality in the Gold Coast 103 . 4.6. Conclusion 105 ii Chapter 5: International human rights instruments in the politics of Gold Coast . 5.1. Introduction 107 . 5.2. The debates about extending ECHR provisions to the Gold Coast 108 . 5.3. Problems in the application of ECHR to the Gold Coast 119 . 5.4. Gold Coast constitutional reforms, 1949-1957 123 . 5.5. Conclusion 132 Chapter 6: Making sense of human rights in the Gold Coast: debates on the bill of rights . 6.1. Introduction 134 . 6.2. A bill of rights and judicial protection of fundamental rights and freedoms 138 . 6.3. The problems with ‘historicising’ human rights through a bill of rights 155 . 6.4. Question of justiciability and reasons for the choice of fundamental rights 158 . 6.5. Negotiating the meaning of fundamental rights and freedoms 165 . 6.6. The gender question in the debates on the bill of rights 169 . 6.7. Rights as an emancipatory discourse or just another hegemony? 172 . 6.8. Conclusion 174 Chapter 7: The Nationalism discourse as a rhetoric of rights . 7.1. Introduction 176 . 7.2. Sowing the seeds of Gold Coast nationalism 177 . 7.3. Post-World War II nationalism and the struggle for rights 181 . 7.4. Changes in British policy after World War II 196 . 7.5. Party politics and the struggle for hegemony: A test case for respecting rights 199 . 7.6. The question of gender equality in Gold Coast nationalism 206 . 7.7. Conclusion 210 General conclusion . 8.1. Human rights: an affirmation of every human being as a rights-holder? 212 . 8.2. The duty of being human 215 Bibliography . Primary sources 218 . Secondary sources 224 Appendices . Appendix I: Gold Coast timeline 238 . Appendix II: Part II (Fundamental Rights) of the Draft Proposals for a Constitution of Ghana, 1957 240 . Appendix III: Memo of the Opposition Parties in the Gold Coast on the Constitution 241 iii Statement I hereby declare that this thesis has not been and will not be submitted in whole or in part to another University for the award of any other degree. Signature …………………………. Isidore Bonabom Date ………………………………. iv Summary The thesis proposes to approach the idea of human rights as a specific truth regime on ‘the human’ that contests those regimes of falsity which deny the essence of humanness on grounds such as race, sex, colour, gender, national or social origin. This theoretical proposition is supported by a case study of the deployment of the idea of human rights in the Gold Coast from 1945 up to Ghana’s independence from colonial rule in 1957. As such, the study analyses how the concept of human rights, affirmed in the 1945 United Nations Charter and the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and articulated in the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights, influenced domestic politics in one British colony in Africa. At the same time, the study highlights the way in which post-World War II nationalism produced some of the most important political changes affecting this region in this era. Relying on a first-hand investigation of archival and primary sources, the thesis scrutinizes the formulation of demands for the collective right to self-determination which emanated from nationalist movements, the evolving drafts for a bill of rights in Ghana’s Independence Constitution and the debates on whether or not to extend the European Convention on Human Rights to the Gold Coast. The particular and disprivileged position of women in the colony is a subject of critical commentary throughout the thesis. By examining critically the emergence of the human rights idea, the study draws attention to the complex interplay of factors as well as actors that inspired a new-fangled notion of universal rights, while highlighting the way politics, including Cold War politics, contributed to define the subject of human rights in an ambiguous, incomplete but promising way. v Acknowledgments “A man can pay a debt of a herd, but he dies forever in debt to his wise teachers and loyal friends.” Dagara proverb The journey of researching for and writing this thesis has been long and at times laborious, but many generous people have been on the way with helping hands and encouraging words. My supervisors, Prof Marie-Bénédicte Dembour and Mr Zdenek Kavan, guided me with wisdom, diligence and thoughtfulness. Dr Marion Smith took a special interest in my welfare as well as in my research, and read drafts of the thesis and made helpful suggestions. Prof Patrick Ryan SJ and Dr Festo Mkenda SJ read chapters 1 and 7 respectively and pointed me to useful literature. My Jesuit superiors, especially Rev George Quickley SJ, Rev John Ghansah SJ, Rev Michael Holman SJ, Rev Timothy Curtis SJ, Rev Paul Hamill SJ, Rev Andrew Cameron-Mowatt SJ, Rev Jude Odiaka SJ and Rev Dermot Preston SJ supported my studies at the University of Sussex. Prof Conor Gearty of the London School of Economics contributed to my initial understanding of human rights law when I studied there some years ago and believed in me even when my self-confidence was at its nadir. Many dear friends and family members encouraged and supported me in the course of researching for and writing this thesis: John Ghansah SJ, Donald Hinfey SJ, Bishop Paul Bemile, Gerald McIntyre SJ, Juliet Odero IBVM, Rebecca Brainoo, Annie Dzakpasu, Pauline Dimech, Engelbert Bonabom, Edward Tengan, Cheryl Bernard, Margaret Atendale, Patrick Segkpeb, Genevieve Segkpeb SSL, Joy Kimemiah, Martin Muosayir, Rose Akollor-Mensah, Agathina Miss SSpS, Edgar Eredire, Paulette Ankrah RVM, Abigail Eshel, Raymond Tangonyire SJ, Kpanie Addy SJ, Peter Gallagher SJ, Uwem Akpan, Isabella Wallerstein, Deidre O’Connell, Irene Owusu-Ansah, Enyo Agbenyaga, Mebrak Ghebreweld, Joseph Minlah, Mary Awua-Boateng, Jamesylvester Urama SJ, Edem Selormey, Norma O’Keeffe, Maritha Ziem, Ronald Adamtey and the Riley, Smith, Tryers and Alozie families. vi Bishop Kieran Conry of Arundel and Brighton welcomed me to his diocese in the last lap of this research. Rev Richard Biggerstaff and Rev Jonathan Martin, priests of St Pancras Catholic Church in Lewes, offered me more than hospitality in their rectory; they also gave me the opportunity to exercise priestly ministry in the parish while working on this thesis. The parishioners of St Pancras welcomed me with generosity to their parish. The staff in the following archives and libraries pointed me to useful archival material in their holdings: Ghana Public Records and Archives Administration Department (PRAAD) in Accra as well as in Cape Coast; the British National Archives in Kew, the British Library in London and the British Library Newspaper Collection at Colindale; the Rhodes House Library in Oxford, the library of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, the library of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and the library of the University of Sussex. Last but not least, my families by birth and by vocation gave me tremendous support throughout the time of researching for and writing this thesis. My father, Mr. Lambert Bonabom, sent a text message at the beginning of each week to assure me of his prayers.