Reports that some media platforms mentioned the full names of students affected by the alleged sexual misconduct at the Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) are deeply concerning.
The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection disclosed that some girls and their families have become reluctant to engage state interventions following the exposure of their identities.
This is not a trivial consequence of journalism; it potentially compromises both the welfare of the children and the pursuit of justice.
It is profoundly troubling that a society demanding justice for children who have allegedly experienced sexual abuse could, in the process, expose them to another form of harm: public humiliation.
It is worth commending the original investigative work of Manasseh Azure Awuni and the JoyNews team for bringing these disturbing allegations to public attention and drawing scrutiny to the responsibilities of authorities expected to act.
Importantly, the identities and dignity of the girls were protected.
This standard must be upheld throughout the process.
A child who has experienced abuse must not be made to suffer public exposure as a second punishment.
Rights
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) is unequivocal about the obligations owed to children.
Article 3 requires that their best interests be a primary consideration in all actions concerning them.
Article 16 protects their privacy, honour and reputation, while Article 19 requires protection from violence, abuse and exploitation.
Article 39 further calls for measures to promote the physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of child victims.
These obligations become even more important when a child becomes the subject of a news story.
Publishing a child’s name, photograph, recognisable voice, school details or other identifying information can expose them to stigma, ridicule, victim-blaming and retaliation.
Circulating videos, encouraging public speculation and asking survivors intrusive questions can deepen their trauma.
Children should not have to repeatedly explain or relive their experiences simply because these have become matters of national interest.
The pursuit of readership, viewership, online engagement and commercial visibility cannot justify such exposure.
When a child’s vulnerability becomes a commodity for attracting audiences, journalism itself becomes a vehicle of exploitation.
There are international standards worth learning from. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, victims of sexual offences enjoy lifelong legal anonymity.
The UK’s Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) also prohibits identifying children under 16 who are victims or witnesses in sexual offence cases.
Its guidance cautions against publishing seemingly harmless details that, when combined, could reveal a child’s identity.
The ethical reporting guidelines of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) similarly recommend changing the names and obscuring the visual identities of children who have experienced sexual abuse or exploitation.
The Ghana Journalists Association’s (GJA) Code of Ethics requires journalists to avoid identifying victims of sexual assault, alongside a Child Protection Code of Ethics developed with the National Media Commission (NMC), Child Rights International and UNICEF.
The question, therefore, is not whether standards exist, but whether they are respected and enforced.
Active
The NMC and GJA must take a more active role in ensuring compliance.
Media houses should establish mandatory child-sensitive reporting protocols, train journalists and editors, and institute editorial checks before publishing stories involving children.
Complaints of harmful identification must attract prompt investigation, appropriate sanctions and corrective action.
Digital platforms must also act swiftly to remove identifying material when breaches occur.
Our duty bearers must recognise that protecting children extends beyond the courtroom or investigation room.
Parents, schools, social welfare officers, the police, health professionals, politicians and community leaders must equally avoid disclosing information that could expose affected children.
The public has a right to know what happened.
It does not have a right to know the identity of every child involved.
Ghana’s children deserve justice, privacy, dignity and the opportunity to heal away from the glare of public scrutiny.
The writer is a Child development expert/Fellow of the
Zero-To-Three Academy, USA.
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