Ghanaian actress and filmmaker Juliet Ibrahim has opened up about a traumatic experience in a previous relationship, revealing that she was repeatedly raped by this unidentified former partner.
Speaking in an interview on the WithChude YouTube channel, Ibrahim recounted how her partner allegedly forced himself on her despite her refusal.
According to her, she repeatedly said “no” during intimate moments but was ignored, with her then-partner insisting that being in a relationship meant there was no need for consent.
“I kept saying, ‘No, stop it. You pinned me down, and you’re doing whatever it is. And you’re smiling. Saying, ‘don’t worry.’ And you’re kissing while I’m crying. Like, that means you’re a rapist,” she narrated.
The actress further disclosed that the abuse extended beyond sexual violence.
She alleged that she was isolated and sometimes locked inside her partner’s house for several days until her sister intervened.
“I had to leave that relationship. I fought my way out of that relationship because he even locked me up in his house for some days until my sister Sonia came to find me. I was scared. Like, what do I do?” she narrated.
From a refugee to a household name: The Juliet Ibrahim story
Ibrahim explained that at the time, she struggled to fully process what was happening, partly due to naivety and uncertainty about where to seek help.
“Every day he wanted to do something. That is rape. I know in those kind of cases you cannot even explain. Who do you go and tell? Who’s going to come and fight for you at that time? You’re naive. You don’t think about it,” she recalled.
Years later, the actress is urging women facing similar situations, particularly spousal rape, to report such incidents to the authorities.
She stressed that forced intimacy within marriage or a relationship is still rape if there is no consent.
“Ladies, you can report it now. There are people whom you can go to and report to. If your husband is forcing you to do something when you’re not in the mood, it is rape. And I tell these men, like, you cannot force a woman,” she stated.
Juliet Ibrahim also said the experience has made her more cautious in her dating life.
She now prioritises conversations about consent and mindset early in relationships, adding that any suggestion of entitlement to intimacy without mutual readiness is a red flag.
“When I’m dating, I like to ask questions a lot. I want to know your mindset. If I speak to a guy and he tells me that, ‘When you’re not in the mood, what if I’m in the mood?’ I’m like, ‘I don’t care.’
“I look at you as a rapist immediately because that means you want to force me. But it’s a mental thing. Your mind, body and soul have to be prepared to receive and make love. That is not how you just do stuff,” she said.
Watch the video below:
“I was r@pe several times in my past relationship. Each time I told him I wasn’t ready, he will say as long as we are in a relationship I don’t care & then force himself on me. He even locked me up in his room for several days.”
-Juliet Ibrahim (WithChude) pic.twitter.com/vOs6YZmVph
— Arthur🇳🇬🇬🇧🇸🇳 (@AjMachalaa) February 21, 2026
ID/AE
Meanwhile, watch GhanaWeb’s exposé on the ‘dark side of Kayamata’ and its devastating impact
