Indeed, in the 1920s it had been taken over by the equally elitist but broader-based and more radical NCBWA, which sought to bring about a fundamental change in colonial rule. The Forest Bill can be traced to the Native Jurisdiction Ordinance of 1883. Sarbah was chosen by his peers to present the indigenous case against the Lands Bill to the Legislative Assembly, which at the time was composed only of British Crown representatives. Some other sources (including Magnus Sampson, 1969) give 6 November 1910 as the date of Mensah Sarbahs death. But the chief justice did not accept the proposal, and in this respect matters have not improved much since Sarbahs day, in spite of the fact that all judges are now Africans. His Fanti Customary Laws is still regarded as an indispensable book for lawyers in Ghana. <<
Several developments in the preceding decades, including the lack of African representation on the Gold Coast Legislative Council, the problem of direct taxation, and the implementation of the Native Jurisdiction Ordinance of 1883, contributed to the formation of the ARPS. Among other things, the ARPS hoped to make sure that various bills and colonial policies involving taxation, labor, and constitutional changes would not burden the Africans. [7] It was this exclusion, in part, that fuelled both the "cultural nationalism" and "anti-colonial political activity" that led to the creation of the Gold Coast ARPS in 1897. Sarbah was the eldest son of John Sarbah, a successful merchant, and was subsequently well-educated. Concerning the competence and compellability of a spouse as a witness in a criminal trial in which the other spouse was the accused, he proposed that no distinction should-be made between the spouse in Christian marriage and the spouse in a customary marriage (The distinction, as he-had suggested, was to be abolished in 1960). His father sent him to England when he was sixteen to continue his education. This reform, too, has now been adopted. News ), Opera News is a free to use platform and the views and opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author and do not represent, reflect or express the views of Opera News. Mr. Henry Kwadwo Amoako is a Ghanaian Social Scientist, Researcher and Acclaimed Historian for over two decades. Any/all written content and images displayed are provided by the blogger/author, appear herein as submitted by the blogger/author and are unedited by Opera News. He therefore published two books,Fanti Customary Laws(1897), andFanti National Constitution (1906). In 1901 he was appointed to the Legislative Council. He died in 1910, without, however, making any provision in his will for the education of his children, probably because he believed that the Akan family system would cater for them. When Governor Sir William Maxwell (term of office 1895-97) refused to withdraw the bill, Sarbah advised the ARPS to send a delegation to England to petition against its . Please accept by clicking on the 'Accept' button on your screen. The statue of Queen Victoria at Victoria park in Cape Coast is a sign of treaty between ARPS and the British Government to abandon the Lands Bill. He also helped to establish the Fanti National Education Fund, which aimed at improving educational facilities in the country and also awarded scholarships.
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The passage of the bill, however, made him very unpopular, especially since subsequently he received the British decoration-of the CMG (Companion of the Order of St. Michael and St.George), an honor some thought that he had sought, though he denied it. An idea of particular interest to the Gold Coast ARPS was the creation of trade among "all of us who are of African blood". He had married Marian Wood of Accra in 1904, and they had three children. >>
Sarbah was interested in promoting secondary education because he felt that it was the best way to enable Africans to gain the respect of the civilized world. Sarbah House, at Mfantsipim, is named after him. This article was reprinted from The Encyclopedia Africana Dictionary of African Biography (In 20 Volumes). John Mensah Sarbah was born on Friday, 3 June 1864, in Anomabu, in the . [2] Mensah Sarbah was educated at the Cape Coast Wesleyan School (later renamed by Mensah Sarbah himself as Mfantsipim School) and then at Queen's College in Taunton, Somerset, England, matriculating in 1884. At the age of 23, he returned to the Gold Coast to set up a legal practice. Last updated: 14 December 2022. John Mensah Sarbah was the first lawyer of the Gold Coast that helped in the documentation of the customary laws of the Gold Coast and present day Ghana. Amazon.com: John Mensah Sarbah: Books 10 results RESULTS Fanti customary laws, a brief introduction to the principles of the native laws and customs of the Fanti and Akan districts of the Gold Coast, with a . ! Y Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. John Mensah Sarbah was interested in promoting agriculture, and wrote an article on The Oil Palm and Its Products in 1909. [10] The Gold Coast ARPS's interest in the affairs of people of colour abroad was predicated on the notion of the salience of race beyond the confines of an African context and the global prevalence of racial discrimination. Sarbah also took an interest in the advancement of secondary education in Ghana and was instrumental in the development of his alma mater, Mfantsipim. John Mensah Sarbah was born in Cape Coast on 3 June 1864. Subscribe to receive notification everytime a new post is published. de Graft-Johnson, Jacob Wilson Sey, J. P. Brown, J. E. Casely Hayford, and John Mensah Sarbah were co-founders. The ARPS opposed the Lands Bill of 1897, which threatened the traditional system of African land tenure, and sent Sarbah to argue against its passage in the Legislative Council. Ghana. Sarbah-Picot House at Mfantsipim School is named after him. As a lawyer, John Mensah Sarbah was interested in spreading knowledge of Fanti laws and of theFanti Constitution. He compiled and published Fanti Law Reports in 1904, but this was incomplete because he was refused permission to take any more notes from court records. John Mensah Sarbah had opposed such proposals before, and people had expected him to oppose the amendment outright. The Oil Palm and Its Products, Journal of the African Society, London, 1909. Over 50 years after his death, the University of Ghana, in 1963, named Mensah Sarbah Hall after him for his services to education. He also identified the need for good interpreters in the courts, and proposed the establishment of a school for court interpreters but the chief justice did not accept the proposal, and in this respect matters have not improved much since Sarbahs day, in spite of the fact that all judges are now Africans. [11] Specifically, many of the members of the Gold Coast ARPS had been educated abroad and were part of an African upper class class that would take over the administration of the Gold Coast should the region be granted independence from colonial rule and thus hold similar power to that of the colonialists over their indigenous brethren. On his return home, John Mensah Sarbah, who was generally known as Kofi Mensah, built up a lucrative practice. Prof. Nana Kobina Nketsia V, Paramount Chief of Essikado Traditional Area in the Western Region in delivering the keynote address encouraged participants to emancipate and deconstruct their minds and share passionately the patriotism of the late John Mensah Sarbah, describing him as an embodiment of a deeply intellectual great son of the land. 0000030321 00000 n
They sent Sarbah to argue against its passage in the Legislative Council. Although the ARPS was an alliance between the African intelligentsia and the chiefs or the indigenous rulers, its leadership was mostly made up of educated Africans who were able to use their literacy to negotiate with the colonial government. trailer
assumptions of the British imperial regime, he felt that, PS opposed the Lands Bill of 1897, which threatened, Building on Custom: Land Tenure Policy and Economic Development in Ghana, Exhuming and Highlighting the Nearly Forgotten Gold Coast Intelligentsia: the Life and Times of Prince Kwamin Atta Amonoo V, The Rise of British Jurisdiction in Ghana Jonqil Van, Primary 5 History of Ghana Facilitator's Guide, Pan-African History: Political Figures from Africa and The, AFRICAN COASTAL ELITE ARCHITECTURE: CULTURAL AUTHENTIFICATION DURING the COLONIAL PERIOD in ANOMABO, GHANA By, The Case of John Mensah Sarbah and the Reconstruction of Gold Coast History, The Commission Shall Advise the President on Development Planning Policy and Strategy, Decolonising African History. J. M. Sarbah, Fanti Customary Laws, London, 1897. He made a lasting mark on national life in politics, education, and law. [3], J.W. [5] Particularly, John Mensah Sarbah, a key member of the Gold Coast ARPS and a lawyer, helped to advocate against the introduction of the Lands Bill of 1897 by arguing that it was no different from a previous, unsuccessful bill in 1894; that its introduction would break family and society ties, and that the land was valuable to indigenous peoples for its religious significance. In addition to his political achievements, Sarbah wrote two books about the Fante and played an important role in establishing public schools in the colony. %
"The neglected aspects of the activities of the Gold Coast Aborigines Rights Protection Society. 24 0 obj
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He deduced that his business was a key driver for his journey to better the lots of his people and the Methodist church. He encouraged farmers to grow cocoa and gave them loans for the purpose. But his interest in politics, which he had shown during his student days in England, led him to take a more active part in political life. arbah failed to sway the opinon of Governor Sir William Maxwell, honored with the Order of St. Michael and St. George, "did not strive for popularity nor was he vainglorious nor egotistical. He was also an entrepreneur who set up two newspapers in the Gold Coast called The Gold Coast Nation and The Gold Coast Times with his money. Email: henrydonsco@gmail.com
Publications such as Gold Coast Nation and Gold Coast Times came from this organization. /Outlines 16 0 R
John Mensah Sarbah was called to the English Bar in 1887. /Root 23 0 R
John Mensah Sarbah was one of the pioneers of Ghanaian politics and a distinguished African politician in the Gold Coast in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Apart from various petitions issued by the ARPS, the society also sent delegations to meet with the colonial government. Contemporaries such as Reverend Attoh Ahuma lamented that Sarbah's work was not appropriately appreciated in his time as he "did not strive for popularity nor was he vainglorious nor egotistical." Although the formation of the ARPS was due to the cumulative effects of colonial rule in the late nineteenth century, the immediate reason for its formation was the Lands Bill. Aborigines Rights Protection Society (ARPS), The Ahanta kings head that was preserved in a jar at a Dutch Laboratory, Coronavirus declared global health emergency by WHO, How Ghanas 1966 World cup boycott led to Africas inclusion, Furious Mesut Ozil agent explains why classless Arsenal signed Thomas Partey on transfer deadline day, WBA and Brighton race to sign Andre Ayew from Swansea City, Ghana National Anthem sang in All Local Dialect. Content created and supplied by: Royalvibes (via Opera Although he accepted the basic assumptions of the British imperial regime, he felt that some of the evils of the crown colony system should be checked. When, for financial reasons, the Wesleyan Mission closed down the Cape Coast Wesleyan School, he and some other nationalists revived it, financed it, and renamed it the Collegiate School. [1][2] Its delegates were active in international organizations and at the 1945 Pan-African Congress, it gained support from Kwame Nkrumah, who later became the main leader of the independence movement. L. H. Ofosu-Appiah. ARPS activities were not restricted to Cape Coast; as early as 1897, the society had local branches in cities along the Gold Coast littoral regions, including Elmina, Saltpond, Winneba, and Axim. The Gold Coast Aborigines' Rights Protection Society (ARPS) was formed in 1897 in the historic city of Cape Coast, a hub of intellectual and political activism in Ghana. /Size 51
Call: +233558280780, Your email address will not be published. Join our whatsapp page, This website uses cookies. John Mensah Sarbah was a good legislator, He was nominated as a member of the Legislative Council by the governor, Sir Mathew Nathan (term of office, 1900- 1904), in 1901 and sat except for a short break, as a member until his death. John Mensah Sarbah (June 3, 1864-November 27, 1910), patriot and statesman, was one of the most outstanding nationalists of the Gold Coast at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. 0000014972 00000 n
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