National Security Brief

National Security Brief (July-September, 2010)

This security brief forms part of the regular quarterly security briefs that GHANEP (WANEP Ghana) issues, as a direct consequence of the National Early Warning System that GHANEP operates. This quarter’s brief is also to commemorate the occasion of the International Day of Peace which fell on 19th September, 2010.

In July, 2010, the Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, Mr Ceasar Kale, in a speech read for him during a recent Youth Forum held in the region advised the youth to disassociate themselves from any form of violence be it political, religious, chieftaincy or land related and focus on issues of national development. This is just one of the numerous instances in which issues of youth violence have been discussed to underscore the fact that youth violence is very much prevalent in almost every part of the country.

In Ghana, violence is extremely predominant among the youth from different walks of life. There seems to be a driving force that urges these young people to engage in such violence. It is very common today to hear news about teenagers or high school students taking part in brutal killings, homicide, murder or even suicide.

In the months of July to September, several violent acts including physical assaults perpetrated by the youth were recorded by the GHANEP Early Warning System, GHANAWARN. These include those in Jirapa, Nyoli and Tumu, in the Upper West Region, Walewale, Tamale and its suburbs; Nyankpala, Bamvim, Lamshegu, and Karaga, in the Nothern Region, Asokore in the Ashanti region, Atiwa in the Eastern Region, and Osu in the Greater Accra Region and Sakom in Bawku of the Upper East Region. Most of these acts were politically related or motivated. The system also recorded increasing cases of, or plans to commit armed robbery including highway robberies in areas including Accra, Sunyani, Agona-Swedru and Nkwanta. Similarly, the system hinted on high numbers of highway accidents resulting in massive loss of lives. The increasing trends in youth violence, armed robbery and road accidents pose a security threat nationwide and therefore require a collective and holistic approach to addressing them.

In the light of the issues raised above, GHANEP as a body specifically wishes to,

• Urge politicians who sponsor the youth to purchase weapons and ammunitions to desist from such acts because those weapons negatively empower the youth to commit violent crimes and offences. They should rather encourage the youth to embark on profitable ventures.

• Appeal to the youth to eschew violence and not allow themselves to be used by others to achieve their selfish interests by also reporting anybody who may want to influence them to perpetrate violent acts.

• Exhort the Inter-Party Dialogue Committees to go beyond discussing issues of political intolerance and violence to collectively applying punitive measure against culprits of politically related violent offences and crimes.

• Petition the government and the law enforcement bodies such as the Police and the Judiciary to be professional and independent in the enforcement of law and order in the country.

• Encourage the Police to continue with its efforts of constituting and implementing the National Community Policing System to help curb highway and community crimes.

• Renew our previous calls to Government, International Institutions and Civil Society to help increase the manpower and logistical capacity of the security services, especially the police to enable them adequately respond to violence nationally.

• Urge the National Road Safety Commission and the various motor transport union’s in Ghana to intensify their efforts at road safety education and discipline amongst drivers and the public in order to reduce the increasing cases of road accidents across the country.

• Encourage civil society peace actors to identify, select and train the youth so as to make them peace and non-violence advocates.

The Ghana Network for Peacebuilding (GHANEP), also called WANEP Ghana is a non-profit civil society organization established to help prevent, resolve, and transform violent conflicts through collective and coordinated efforts of non-governmental institutions, organizations and individuals actively engaged in peacebuilding practice in Ghana.

Through the Department for International Development (DFID) and Christian Aid, GHANEP has been hosting is an Early Warning Centre (EWC). The EWC is designed to track both conflict/human security incidents and situations across the country. Input into the system is primarily done by Community Surveillance Team (CST) members, Regional Chapter members of GHANEP, Regional Stakeholders comprising security/government agencies and a Data Analyst, through phone calls, e-mail, text messaging and an interactive web-based system. Response to human security threats are informed by various outputs of the database, including the Ghana PeaceWatch, Regional/National Security briefs and press releases.

Thank you.

Justin Bayor

National Network Coordinator

0264601070