Gender activist Amanda Odoi has urged Ghanaians to stop framing the circulation of intimate videos allegedly leaked by a Russian national as a morality issue, describing the incident instead as technology-facilitated gender-based violence that demands a coordinated state response.
Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Friday (20 February), Odoi said public commentary has unfairly targeted the women involved while ignoring the alleged perpetrator’s actions and the question of consent.
“There’s nothing wrong if a woman meets someone and they decide to have a consensual relationship,” she said. “The problem is the technology-facilitated abuse — recording and leaking intimate content without consent.”
The controversy has dominated social media, with some critics labelling the women “cheap,” while others argue the real issue is privacy violations and digital exploitation.
Odoi cautioned against judging the women based on short clips circulating online, noting that the videos appear edited and do not capture the full context of their interactions.
“If someone shows you only the end of a story, you cannot assume what happened before,” she explained. “We don’t know the conversations or how long they engaged. These were private decisions.”
According to her, consenting to intimacy does not amount to consenting to be filmed or exposed publicly.
“The consent to be recorded is missing. The consent to share is missing. That is abuse,” she stressed.
State responsibility
Odoi said the burden should not be placed on women to “learn lessons,” arguing that such framing implies they are responsible for their own victimisation.
“If we say it’s a lesson for the ladies, then we are saying they caused what happened,” she said. “This is not an individual problem. It is a structural problem.”
She called on state institutions to intervene, including, removing the content online, activating cybercrime enforcement, providing psychosocial support, and strengthening workplace sexual harassment protections.
She added that some of the affected women reportedly met the man in professional contexts, meaning employers and institutions must extend safeguards beyond office spaces.
“Women should not be sent out to work and left unprotected,” she said.
Odoi also urged immigration and tourism authorities to conduct stronger background checks on foreign nationals with histories of exploiting women.
Ultimately, she said, the incident should be understood as gender-based violence, not a morality trial.
“Let’s frame this correctly,” she said. “This is abuse perpetrated against women in Ghana. Stop blaming the women and focus on the perpetrator.”
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