Obuasi SHTS case: Gender Ministry faces challenges engaging victims as 3 girls withdraw over media reports

The Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection is facing challenges engaging some victims in the alleged sexual abuse case at Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS), with three girls reportedly withdrawing from the process over concerns about media reports revealing their identities.

The ministry says some of the students and their families have become reluctant to participate after media outlets allegedly mentioned the girls' full names, while others have been identified by friends and relatives despite efforts to conceal their faces.

Gender Minister Dr Agnes Naa Momo Lartey has appealed to journalists to exercise restraint in their coverage of the case, warning that the disclosure of victims' identities could undermine efforts to support them and seek justice.

Speaking about the challenges facing the ministry, Dr Lartey said some of the girls had withdrawn after hearing their full names mentioned on a media platform.

"One of the challenges we've had engaging the victims is that the media has not helped the case," she said.

"Two or three of the students have had to withdraw because they heard their names being mentioned fully, their full names," the Minister added.

She said the disclosures had also affected the willingness of parents to continue engaging with the ministry.

"And because of that, the parents are reluctant to engage further," she explained.

Dr Lartey said the challenges went beyond the mention of victims' names, explaining that some students whose faces had been concealed during media reports had still been identified through their voices.

She warned that such disclosures could expose the girls to further difficulties within their families and social circles at a time when they needed support and protection.

"Even those that were covered, their faces were covered. Some friends and family members were able to identify their voices, and it is going against them," she said.

According to the minister, the situation was making it more difficult for officials to engage the victims and their families as they work towards addressing the allegations.

She urged media organisations to consider the long-term consequences of their reporting and avoid publishing details that could reveal the identities of the students.

"As much as we want the stories, as much as we want the news, I will appeal to all of us, we are in this together," she said.

Dr Lartey said that protecting the girls' identities was a shared responsibility and that failures by one group could affect the wider effort to secure justice.

She said the work of the ministry and other stakeholders could be undermined if victims no longer felt safe enough to participate in the process.

"It is not if one system fails; it is not just that system but all of us who depend on that system to ensure that we come to a conclusion and we seek justice for victims, we'll all be affected one way or the other," she added.

The minister also raised concerns about the pressure some of the students had faced from journalists seeking interviews about their experiences.

She said the girls had been overwhelmed by questions and that some media practitioners had approached them persistently for interviews.

"The victims have also been overwhelmed with questions. They've had media persons harassing them for interviews, and this is not the time you ask a victim to come for an interview," Dr Lartey said.

She appealed to journalists to avoid putting the students under pressure to recount their experiences publicly, particularly when such accounts could expose them to further distress.

The minister urged reporters to explore other ways of covering the case without relying directly on the girls to tell their stories.

"I will appeal to you; don't let us make stories that can be told from different points of view, rather than directly from the children," she said.