Wesley Girls: Attorney General to Defend School From Allegations of Religious Discrimination
- The Attorney General is set to defend Wesley Girls' High School after it was sued over religious discrimination against Muslim students
- Wesley Girls' High School has been accused of infringing on the rights of Muslim students to practice their religion in the school
- The plaintiff has urged the court to declare the school's actions unconstitutional and to prohibit it from enforcing discriminatory rules
Attorney General Justice Dominic Ayine has filed a formal response to the lawsuit challenging alleged discriminatory religious practices at Wesley Girls’ Senior High School.
The lawsuit, filed back in December 2024 by Shafic Osman, a lawyer, challenges the school’s alleged restrictions on Muslim students, including claims that they are barred from wearing the hijab.
Source: Facebook
Osman also cites opposition to fasting during Ramadan and observing other Islamic practices.
He stressed that the restrictions violate constitutional protections for religious freedom.
According to The Law Platform, the Attorney General rejected the assertion that the school’s policies are unlawful.
Osman has urged the court to declare that the compulsory practice of religion in a public school is contrary to and inconsistent with Articles 21(1) (b) (c) and Article 26 of the 1992 Constitution.
The Attorney General argued that Wesley Girls SHS was established and operated under the Methodist Church of Ghana and is entitled to maintain rules consistent with its Methodist heritage and doctrines.
According to the Attorney General, the school’s faith-based identity grants it the authority to set standards of conduct and religious practice on campus, even when such rules restrict the expression of other faiths.
The court shall hear the case on November 25.
In response to the controversy, the Executive Director of Africa Education Watch emphasised that the school could be more inclusive.
"PRESEC Legon is a Christian school, yet Muslim students freely observe Ramadan there. They even have a place where they pray. If Muslim students do Ramadan at Wesley Girls, will the school collapse?"
Asare also noted the Tyrone Marghuy case that affirmed the rights of religious minorities in schools.
What is the Attorney General arguing?
According to the proposed statement of case attached to the motion for amendment, the Attorney General has argued that Wesley Girls High School, a missionary-founded school, has the right to practice its religion of Methodist Christian Faith, consistent with the Canadian case of LOYOLA HIGH SCHOOL vs. QUEBEC (ATTORNEY-GENERAL) [2015] 1 S.C.R 613 SC.
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The Attorney-General is also relying on the Bomfeh vs National Cathedral case and argued that Wesley Girls High School is entitled to government funding despite its character of religious ownership and that the State cannot take away the religious rights of the school on the grounds of receipt of government funding.
Former student recounts experience at Gey Hey
YEN.com.gh reported that Fathia Ayodele Kareem, a young Ghanaian medical doctor who attended Wesley Girls' Senior High School from 2006 to 2009, recounted her story as a Muslim student.
According to Fathia, in a narration on her Facebook page, many good things were instilled in her during her school years, for which she is grateful; however, the extent of religious intolerance left much to be desired.
Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
