A senior officer of the Ghana Police Service has said that denying one’s spouse sexual relations could amount to emotional abuse and attract a jail term under the country’s domestic violence laws.
The Assistant Commissioner of Police, Dennis Fiakpui, disclosed this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on Thursday.
Fiakpui, who is the Oti Regional Deputy Police Commander, said Ghana’s Domestic Violence Act 732 of 2007 recognises certain conduct within marriage and intimate relationships as emotional abuse.
According to him, a spouse who deliberately withholds sex in a manner that causes emotional distress to their partner could face legal consequences if a complaint is filed and the offence is proven in court.
“Denying your partner sex can amount to emotional abuse,” Fiakpui said.
He added that women who refuse their husbands sexual relations could be charged and, upon conviction, face up to two years’ imprisonment.
The police officer, however, noted that the law applies equally to both genders, stressing that husbands who deny their wives sex could also be reported and investigated under the same provisions of the law.
Fiakpui further explained that other actions capable of causing emotional pain within a marriage could also form the basis of a complaint to the Domestic Violence and Victim Support Unit.
He cited examples such as a husband consistently refusing to eat his wife’s food, habitually coming home late, or engaging in behaviour that causes emotional distress.
He said, “If your husbands refuse to eat your food and make you unhappy and cause you emotional pain, you can also report it to the police and if your husbands come home late and cause you to be unhappy, you can make a case at DOVSSU.”
He urged individuals who feel emotionally abused in their marriages to seek help from the appropriate authorities rather than suffer in silence.
