By Emelia B. Addae
Koforidua, March 26, GNA – The Eastern Regional Secretariat of the National Peace Council has hosted a regional-level political party trust-building programme aimed at tackling the challenges of vigilantism ahead of the general elections slated later this year.
The meeting also aimed to provide comprehensive guidelines to prevent hate speech and other forms of indecent expressions that could potentially mar the country’s prevailing peace.
The programme, which was held in the eastern regional capital, Koforidua, gathered members from different political parties and institutions, including the Ghana Police Service, the Electoral Commission, and the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE).
Other notable participating groups included representatives of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), the New Patriotic Party (NPP), the Convention People’s Party (CPP), and the People’s National Convention (PNC).
Mr Frank Wilson Bodza, Deputy Director in Charge of Conflict Management and Resolution at the National Peace Council highlighted the importance of the programme in eliminating electoral violence and preserving peace in the country as the general elections approach in December 2024.
He stated that for any sustainable development to occur, it is crucial that Ghanaians, especially the political parties and independent candidates participating in the 2024 general elections, prioritise the preservation of democracy.
According to Mr Bodza, the Vigilantism and Related Offences Act, 2019 seeks to disband vigilante groups, including those affiliated with political parties and land guards. Its purpose is to outlaw acts of vigilantism in the country and address related issues.
He pointed out that vigilantism could lead to opportunism and give rise to violence, corruption, and social exclusion.
Mr Prince Albert Koomson, the Eastern Regional Executive Secretary of the National Peace Council, indicated that the issue of hate speech and incitement expressions has become increasingly prevalent in Ghana, particularly during election years.
As a result, he said this posed a serious risk to the country’s peace and progress, and further stated that the media should play a crucial role in educating the public.
However, he noted that the media’s partisan ownership has become a powerful tool for spreading hate speech and incitement, leading to increased violence.
He stated that the National Peace Council, in collaboration with the National Media Commission, has developed a set of guidelines to assist the media and other stakeholders in gaining a deeper understanding of hate speech and other inappropriate expressions.
The guidelines outline the potential consequences of such behaviour and provide strategies for avoiding them in day-to-day operations.
He also outlined some of the legal basis of the guidelines, which included international human rights that provide for the implementation of policies and programmes aimed at redressing the economic or educational imbalance in Ghanaian society.
Article 21(1) of the 1992 Constitution gives latitude to every Ghanaian, including the media, to express themselves.
However, Article 164 imposes some limitations and qualifications on the rights to free expression or free speech.
The Political Parties Act, 2000 (Act 574) and the Political Parties Code of Conduct, 2012 bar political parties from engaging in violence and from encouraging their members and supporters to do so.
Section 36 of PNDCL 284, makes it an offence to interfere with the electioneering activities of other persons if a person seeks to excite or promote disharmony, hatred, or enmity against another person or group of persons by words, written or verbal and songs on the grounds of religious, tribal, professional, regional, or political affiliation.
GNA