A 15-year-old Junior High School (JHS) female student, (name withheld) has been left emotionally traumatized after being physically subjected to beatings and sexually harassed by two boys who were hired by her stepfather for sleeping outside.
The incident happened at Akyem-Ofoase in the Akyemansa District of the Eastern region last week Sunday.
The step-father identified as Kofi Owusu, a farmer and her mother, Sarah Frimpong allegedly hired the boys who whipped and fingered the little girl after stripping her naked.
The boy also took videos of her nakedness to share on social media all under the supervision of both her step-father and her biological mother.
Background
The young reportedly left home Saturday night and did not return home until Sunday morning. Upon her arrival, one of the boys named Simeon rushed her with a bucket full of cold water and poured it on her claiming he was baptizing her to deliver her from the spirit of chasing men.
She was then stripped naked and flogged. She fled to a palm plantation nearby but the boys accosted her and allegedly attempted to have sex with her which she resisted.
The stepfather allegedly followed up to the bush and this time around he did the whipping himself.
When the viral went viral on social media, the victim is reportedly now a laughing stock in the town.
The victim’s uncle who is domiciled in South Africa rather reported the matter to police in Ofoase and also contacted a lawyer and Gender Activist, Mary Ohenewaa to seek justice for his niece.
He disclosed the young girl has suffered bruises all over her body as a result of the flogging and the parents have refused to send her to the hospital.
However, the police are said to have failed to make any arrest on claims that their family head has asked to resolve the matter at home since it is a family issue.
A livid lawyer, Mary Ohenewaa in an interview on Adom FM’s morning show, Dwaso Nsem programme Tuesday said the victim’s uncle in South Africa has decided not to pursue the case.
She suspects the family may have threatened to ‘deal with him’ should he go public with the issue.
This notwithstanding, Ms Ohenewaa said she was committed to seeking justice for the young girl who has been traumatized by the happening.
Even more worrying, she stated, is the refusal to seek medical help for the girl after the incident. “This is an act of lawlessness and a breach of the girl’s fundamental human rights and I will seek justice for her” Ms. Ohenewaa bemoaned.
