The Sankofa symbol expresses the instruction to turn backwards to history and tradition and take important knowledge and values, thus a better future will be built up. During this time of international discussion concerning Jerusalem, let us follow this principle and review once again the history of our beloved Jerusalem – the city that is compact together! (Psalms, 122:3, NKJV).

The long 3000 years of existence of Jerusalem is well documented. It is embedded in its soil, burnt in archaeological discoveries and most importantly, it is well-illustrated in the Holy Bible. King David began the process of sanctifying Jerusalem by transferring the Holy Ark into it. Therefore, Jerusalem became holy for King David’s descendants – the sons of Israel, and following that to Christians and Muslims. It was King Solomon who was instructed to build the house of God in Jerusalem.

As it says in 2 Chronicles, 3:1: “Then Solomon began to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the Lord had appeared to his father David. It was on the threshing floor of Araunan[a] the Jebusite, the place provided by David”.

The holiness of Jerusalem and its significance as a religious center increased due to pilgrimages that were obeying “The words which Moses spoke unto all Israel” in the name of God (Deuteronomy, 1:1). The people of Israel were told to appear before the Lord at a place which He chooses three times a year.”…at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles” Deuteronomy, 16:16 NKJV.

During the Second Temple period (538BC – 70AD), the tradition of pilgrimage had become a common practice. That is why Jesus Christ was entering Jerusalem at that famous time. Jesus Christ went through the golden gate and was welcomed with palm branches on his way to the Temple. It was during spring time when the Feast of Unleavened Bread was celebrated, which is also known as the Jewish holiday of Passover. King Herod expanded that temple and made it the largest and most luxurious building in the East at that time.

Historically, the name Jerusalem has been preserved until 135 AD. The change came after the Bar-Kokhba revolt, in which the Jews were fighting for their independence and for their right to worship their God. Following that, the Romans changed the name of Jerusalem to Aelia Capitolina, and the name of the province Judea to Syria-Palestina.

It was done in order to erase any trace of Jewish identity of the city. Most of the Jews – the descendants of King David, were deported to exile, but kept on praying to go back to Jerusalem during the long diaspora.

The consistent use of some proverbs throughout generations by the sons of Israel all over the world reflects their deep bond to Jerusalem. A bond that was kept through the long diaspora for thousands of years. For example, at every Jewish wedding ceremony, the groom says: “If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand forget its skill!” Psalm 137:5, NKJV. This demonstrates the eternal love, loyalty and commitment of the people of Israel to Jerusalem, which shows up even at the most private and significant ceremony such as marriage. Another saying that follows an ancient ritual in the Jewish tradition is: “Next year in built Jerusalem”. It is said every year at the end of Passover’s dinner, after reading the Exodus story of the sons of Israel from Egypt through the work of the almighty God. It shows the strong wish of every Jew to reach Jerusalem, and if he has not yet managed to get there, he hopes and prays to be there in the next year.

Jewish heritage and identity were kept by many members of the Jewish communities around the world. Many of them continued to use the Hebrew language – the original language of the Old Testament, as the prayer and religious studies language.

Today, the Palestinians are trying to rewrite the history, so they can gain a political support around the world and by false representation to achieve their purpose – to destroy the existence of the state of Israel! Understanding that the historical right of the Jewish people to Jerusalem is well based in the Holy Bible, they are trying to claim that they are the descendants of the Jebusites and the Canaanites. The only problem with this claim is the complete absence of scientific evidence to substantiate this false argument.

Psalms, 122:1-3, NKJV, illustrates the excitement, love and respect of pilgrims attending Jerusalem: “I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the LORD. Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem. Jerusalem is built as a city that is compact together.” According to these verses, it is harmony, tolerance and mercy that build up Jerusalem. This attitude is well applied today by the Israeli democracy. Every individual can worship his religion and reach his holy sites. Israel is the only democracy in the region and the concept: “Freedom of religion” appears at the Israeli “Declaration of Independence” and well respected despite the challenges that are involved in implementing it.

It says: “For my brethren and companions’ sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee. Because of the house of the LORD our God I will seek thy good.” Psalms, 122:8-9, NKJV. That peaceful tolerance spirit of integrity did not lead the house of the UN on December 21, 2017. 128 members of the UN General Assembly, including Ghana, voted against the United States’ recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, and its decision to move the USA embassy from Tel-Aviv to Jerusalem. That UN voting is fundamentally wrong and illegitimate, as it is violates the sovereignty of two of its democratic members. First, Israel’s right, as a sovereign country to choose its capital, and second, the USA’s right as a sovereign state to determine its foreign policy towards another state. No one has the right to interfere in that declaration of the USA. No one has the right to cancel it, not even 128 members of the UN!

The famous proverb associated with the Sankofa symbol says: “It is not wrong to go back for that which you have forgotten”. Looking back at the long history of Jerusalem and the founder of Holy Jerusalem: King David, the king of Israel, clarifies once again the unbroken linkage between the people of Israel to Jerusalem! Let us hope that Jerusalem will be well kept as a peaceful and unifying factor for all its lovers forever, as it says in Psalms: 122:6, NKJV: “Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.”
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By: H. E. Ami Melh
Ambassador of the State of Israel to Ghana
Dr. Yael Mehl, Public Diplomacy Coordinator, Embassy of the State of Israel to Ghana

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The President, who spoke at the commissioning of eight envoys at the Flagstaff House on Tuesday night, charged them to work to protect the interest of all Ghanaians in their respective countries.

[contextly_sidebar id=”JiWxSQoMSg08Z58kFFRy0BrvTOTQL2lp”]The President asked the envoys to cooperate and work with all Ghanaians in their respective countries.

“Your rapport with the Ghanaian community in your respective countries will be vital to your prospects of success. We will be counting and looking up to you to champion not only our nation’s interest but theirs as well. Do your best not to disappoint them. The Ghanaian people have placed their hopes for a better life in us. We cannot fail them”

The envoys are Emmanuel Enos, Qatar, Francis Abakah, Sierra Leone, Ernest-Burke Asare-Asiedu, Liberia, and Yahaya Iddi Ahmed-Rufai, Kuwait. The rest are Mrs. Hannah Ama Nyarko, Israel, Joseph Kweku Antwi, DR Congo, Mrs Perpetual Dufu, Angola and Sayuti Yahaya Iddi, Iran.

The President’s comment comes on the back of recent remarks by Ghana’s High Commissioner to South Africa, Ayisi Boateng, who averred that he will first serve the interest of NPP supporters.

Mr. Boateng had stated that members of the party’s Tertiary Students’ Confederacy Network (TESCON), will be prioritized for various jobs, if he had his own way.

He also said he considers NPP members as more Ghanaians than others.

“…this government is doing its best to create job opportunities and me for instance, I told my people over there [that], it is because of NPP that I’m here, so the NPP man is my priority. I told them when NDC was in power it was Kwesi Ahwoi who was there, now we are in power, so Ayisi-Boateng is here with you. My topmost priority is the problems of an NPP person before any other Ghanaian take it or leave it,” he said.

His comment invoked a public uproar with some Ghanaians as well as civil society organizations calling on the president to fire him.

There has since not been any official response from the Flagstaff House on the issue, after he was reportedly invited there for a meeting that culminated in him issuing an apology.

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By: Marian Ansah & Sammy Wiafe/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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Speaking to Citi Business News in Copenhagen, at a reception by her office to welcome four Ghanaian journalists on a press trip at the invitation of the Danish Government, Her Excellency Mrs. Amerley Ollenu Awua-Asamoa, said Government’s policy of diaspora engagement is aimed at attracting Ghana’s high quality manpower to help bring home the needed investment to drive the government’s industrialization agenda.

“Looking at the government initiative or policy on diaspora engagements where we think most of the Ghanaians in the diaspora are intellectuals and have been here for some time, we need them to come home to help build the economy. And in that sense, as far as our Mission is concerned, we want to engage the diaspora, collaborate and network with them to bring investors back home. We want them to bring their skills and technical know-how to assist the Ghanaian community. Forming partnerships with foreign countries is a win-win situation, and we believe they know our culture very well, so if they have any skills, this is the time to come and assist in transforming Ghana.”

The Ambassador also expressed optimism that the visit of the Queen of Denmark to Ghana would go a long way to strengthen the Ghana beyond Aid agenda.

“We are very excited that the Queen is visiting Ghana because it’s very historic. She has never been to West Africa, and she has selected Ghana and so it means a lot to us. It’s a big privilege for us. And looking at it from the perspective that Ghana is moving from aid to trade, and Denmark is also transiting from aid to trade as far as her development partners are concerned, for us, it’s a very positive idea” he noted.

Expensive visas making trips home difficult – Ghanaians in Demark

However, speaking at the residence the Ghanaian Ambassador, a Ghanaian IT Consultant in Denmark, Kwame Owusu Danquah, blamed the high cost of visas for their inability to come home often to contribute their quota to national development.

Kwame Owusu Danquah, who’s also the President of the Ghanaian Akan community in Denmark, thus called on the government to ease the cost of acquiring visas for people of Ghanaian descent to enable them and their families return to the country with ease.

“Most of us have acquired other nationalities although our heart is Ghanaian and we would very much like to come to Ghana. We come [to Ghana] often, but another thing is that, the government should help us to come more often by reducing the visa fees which are quite expensive.”

Speaking to Citi FM’s Bernard Avle who’s in Denmark alongside three other journalists ahead of a visit by the Danish Queen to Ghana, Owusu Danquah said persons like him remained Ghanaian at heart despite having acquired other nationalities.

“If you and your wife and two children are coming, it is very expensive,” Mr. Danquah noted further.

He pointed to the example of India as one country that makes it easy for its citizens in the diaspora to contribute immensely to the country’s economic fortunes, and said if the government “opens the doors, we will come.”

“We are ready and we have a lot of resources. We would like to contribute. We are Ghanaians and we would like to come back [home],” Mr. Danquah affirmed.

Danish queen’s visit

Citi FM’s reports from Denmark come ahead of the official State Visit of Denmark’s Head of State, Her Majesty the Queen Margrethe II, from November 23 to November 24.

The 3-day press trip to Denmark was organised for four selected Ghanaian journalists, including Citi Breakfast Show host, Bernard Koku Avle.

The press trip will be capped with a press conference with Queen Margrethe II.

The Queen, on her eventual historic visit to Ghana, is expected to be accompanied by a Danish business delegation within three focus sectors, namely food & agriculture, sustainability, maritime, infrastructure and railways.
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By: Ebenezer Afanyi Dadzie/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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The Uruguay forward was punished after biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini at the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil.

An initial appeal against the 27-year-old’s suspension was rejected by Fifa.

The appeal has been filed by Suarez, Uruguay and Barcelona, the Spanish club he joined last month in a £75m transfer from Liverpool.

CAS has agreed to fast-track the case, and it is thought a verdict could be announced by the end of the week after the hearing.

Barcelona’s first match of the new La Liga season is on 24 August, but if the ban is upheld, Suarez will be out until late October.

Under the terms of the suspension, he is banned from “any football-related activity”, which means he cannot train with his club or enter the confines of any stadium, although players’ union Fifpro argues the details “lack clarity”.

Suarez is also banned from playing for the national team for nine matches and was fined 100,000 Swiss francs (£66,000).

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Source: BBC Sport

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