“Ghana needs National Anti-Sexual Harassment Policy” – Lawyer Sosu
Human Rights Lawyer and Activist, Francis-Xavier Sosu, has called for a National Policy on anti-sexual Harassment.
He made the call in reaction to the BBC expose on ‘Sex for Grades’ in two of West Africa’s prestigious universities -University Lagos, Nigeria and University of Ghana, Legon-.
After gathering dozens of testimonies, BBC’s Africa Eye sent undercover journalists posing as students inside the University of Lagos and the University of Ghana.
Female reporters were sexually harassed, propositioned and put under pressure by senior lecturers of the institutions – all the while wearing secret cameras.
Prof. Ransford Gyampo, Head of Political Science at the University of Ghana and Dr. Paul Kwame Butakor a lecturer at the Department of Teacher Education of the School of Education and Leadership at the University of Ghana, as well as Boniface Igbeneghu of the University of Lagos, were filmed making sexual advances at ‘students’ who were actually undercover investigators.
Commenting on the issue on Facebook on Tuesday, Mr. Sosu noted that “Many young females in our educational and professional establishments across the country are victims and we must work to stop this.”
“It seems as a country, we have lowered the bar so much that many inappropriate sexual behaviors (words, touches, eye contacts) go undetected and unpunished. This leaves the victims traumatized. We must get serious as a people with these matters too,” he said.
“If you are a pastor, parent, teacher, lecturer, driver, or some superior (boss) in some company, remember that any unwelcome and inappropriate sexual behavior and gestures can amount to harassment,” he noted.
See full post below:
On Sexual Harassment Expose by BBC.
Let us not be too quick to judge and condemn Prof Ransford Gyampo. Prof. has worked very hard to get to his current position and we must respect his achievements and give him the benefit of the doubt.
However I believe in all fairness the University of Ghana will do itself and the international community some good if it immediately causes an investigation into the allegations and make it’s position officially known on this matter.
As a matter of concern, Ghana needs to immediately consider a National Anti-sexual harassment policy for all public and private institutions.
There is no doubt that a lot of our ladies and young professionals suffer various degrees of sexual abuse in silence.
Many young females in our educational and professional establishments across the country are victims and we must work to stop this.
It seems as a country, we have lowered the bar so much that many inappropriate sexual behaviors (words, touches, eye contacts) go undetected and unpunished. This leaves the victims traumatised. We must get serious as a people with these matters too.
If you are a pastor, parent, teacher, lecturer, driver, or some superior (boss) in some company, remember that any unwelcomed and inappropriate sexual behavior and gestures can amount to harassment. For the record, Sexual Harassment is defined as
“behaviour characterized by the making of unwelcomed and inappropriate sexual remarks or physical advances in a workplace or other professional or social situation.”
God Bless Our Homeland Ghana.