The Leitner Center for International Law and Justice is pleased to present a screening and discussion of the documentary, Left to Rot, by award-winning Ghanaian journalist Seth Kwame Boateng.

Seth returns to the prisons he visited in his first groundbreaking documentary, Locked And Forgotten, to see if any changes have occurred since the filming of his first documentary. Seth’s second documentary, Left To Rot, fulfills his promise to the inmates that he will not allow them to be forgotten and keeps their problems on the political agenda.

Left To Rot is an inspiring documentary, a story of resilience and a story of investigative journalism that will continue to shed light on problems and people society often prefer to ignore.

Filmed in Ghana, the documentary raises challenges that are common to many, if not all, countries around the world.

A discussion with Seth Boateng will follow the screening.

RSVP: kagyemanbudu@law.fordham.edu

Bio of Filmmaker:
Seth Kwame Boateng is an award winning leading Ghanaian journalist and documentary maker. Born in a loving but poor family in 1984, in Asokwa-Kumasi in the Ashanti Region, Seth’s parents were determined to ensure he received the best possible education and worked tirelessly to give him access to the best schools in Ghana. His parents, refusing to allow him to work as a child told him: “…. the only cocoa farm we have for you is education”. Seth rose from his poor background to become one of Ghana’s most celebrated journalists. Seth still finds his own progress shocking because as he often says “If anybody told me that one day I could afford a bottle of milk let alone be a journalist, I would not have believed them.”

Seth’s passion for journalism started when he was 17 years old. His passion for storytelling, for allowing the under-privileged to be seen and heard, to tell the truth and investigate often untold stories, was truly a mission, one that he has accomplished in life. Starting with his first job as a receptionist in a local radio station, just to be near the newsroom, Seth worked tirelessly to be in front of a microphone to tell stories and report news.

His determination has paid off and over the years Seth has worked in leading radio stations in Ghana and since 2008 has worked with Multimedia, the largest radio and news organization in Ghana.

Throughout his career Seth has worked on countless stories ranging from the struggle of childless couples in Ghana, to the stigma faced by those with sickle cell disease, to the plight of children born with deformities, to the difficulties and challenges faced by children with cancer in the struggling health care system in Ghana, to the pockets of conflicts in the Northern part of Ghana, to being Joy FM’s Presidential Correspondent.

In 2015, Seth released his first documentary on prisoners’ conditions, Locked and Forgotten. The documentary was received with great public and critical acclaim. It brought into the spotlight the appalling conditions of Ghanaian prisoners and led the President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, for the first time in the country’s history to visit a prison facility. The documentary led to actions to address the problems from all stakeholders. Over two hundred remand prisoners got their freedom through that documentary. Seth’s second documentary, Left To Rot, is ensuring that the lights are not turned off on prisoners’ conditions. Seth was awarded the 2014 P.A.V Ansah Ghana Best Journalist Award in recognition of his outstanding journalism.

Seth is married to Bervlyn, has a 10 month old son named Benaiah and has 17 siblings. Seth lives and works in Accra.

Film Screenings