21/08/2026
A Victim-Centred Response to the BOGISS Defilement Case
In the matter concerning the alleged defilement of a special needs student at BOGISS, I am deeply saddened by the agony being endured by the victim, particularly when the process for ensuring accountability for the alleged perpetrator remains unclear.
I appreciate and commend the victim-centred approach adopted by the Ministry of Education and the CSOs engaging with the matter. The welfare, dignity, safety and protection of the child must remain paramount.
The fact that the victim is a child with special needs makes the reported treatment even more concerning. Such a child may require heightened protection, appropriate support, reasonable accommodation and a carefully considered institutional response when dealing with allegations of sexual abuse. Any response that fails to take these vulnerabilities into account risks compounding the childâs trauma.
In my view, the school, acting in loco parentisâthat is, in the place of a parentâand having immediate responsibility for the childâs safety and welfare, should have reported the matter to the police and ensured that the appropriate criminal justice processes were activated, rather than merely referring or releasing the matter to the Regional Education Directorate.
As for the actions reportedly taken against the victim and the characterization of the matter as âsexual misconduct,â the least said about it, the better.
If a child who may have been sexually abused is subsequently subjected to punitive, stigmatizing or otherwise inappropriate treatment by the very institution expected to protect her, the system risks inflicting further harm on an already traumatized child.
This is what is often described as system-induced traumaâwhere the response of institutions and those entrusted with protecting a victim inadvertently compounds the trauma arising from the original incident.
The BOGISS case should therefore prompt a serious review of the relevant provisions of the GES handbook, which was referenced by the Headmistress. Administrative procedures must not operate in a manner that conflicts with, undermines or delays legally established processes for dealing with alleged sexual offences against children.
Most importantly, the best interests of the child must come first.
Accountability for the alleged perpetrator and protection of the victim are not competing objectives. They are both essential components of justice.
A childâparticularly a child with special needsâshould never have to suffer a second trauma because the systems established to protect her failed to respond appropriately to the first.
CSP Elvis Bawa Sadongo (Rtd.)
Security Consultant | Child Rights Advocate | Gender Activist
CEO, Pempen Consult
