By Albert Futukpor, GNA
Jang (S/R), April 22, GNA – The Savannah Regional Peace Council has intensified its campaign against hate speech and misinformation through series of community-based dialogues and capacity-building trainings held at Jang, Chieyiri, and Don-arayiri communities in the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District.
The dialogues and trainings, supported by the Embassies of Norway and Denmark through the United Nations Development Programme, formed part of the ongoing project titled: “Preventing and Responding to Violent Extremism in the Atlantic Corridor.”
The project seeks to strengthen community resilience and prevent conflict through responsible communication and the promotion of alternative and counter-narratives.
Over 150 people including traditional authorities, religious leaders, assembly, and unit committee members as well as representatives from women and youth groups across the three communities took part in the dialogues and trainings.
Mr Kennedy Atiibo, Regional Executive Secretary, Savannah Regional Peace Council, speaking during the engagements in the communities, emphasised the role communication played in shaping social relations and either promoting peace or triggering conflict.
He said while differences in opinions and perspectives were natural within diverse communities, the use of offensive, inflammatory, or misleading language often escalated tensions and deepened divisions.
He emphasised that hate speech, misinformation and disinformation remained key drivers of conflict and could contribute to violence, communal insecurity, and division, which could attract violent extremist groups if not addressed proactively.
Mr Atiibo said the intervention by the Savannah Regional Peace Council and its partners was informed by the urgent need to equip community stakeholders with practical knowledge and skills to identify, prevent and counter harmful and divisive narratives.
The training sessions featured interactive discussions and practical learning activities on a range of relevant topics including understanding hate speech, misinformation, and disinformation, and locally conceptualising them.
Participants were taken through how to identify and deal with hate speech, misinformation, and disinformation.
They were asked to identify the effects and examine the link between hate speech and misinformation and social cohesion, and by extension, how the lack of social cohesion could expose communities and the country at large to violent extremism.
They were guided on how to develop and disseminate alternative and counter-narratives to foster unity and social cohesion.
They were also made to understand that even though the laws of Ghana promoted free speech, they also criminalized the publication or sharing of false news that caused fear and panic as well as incitement to violence.
Mr Atiibo urged participants to embrace responsible communication by promoting messages rooted in tolerance, respect, and peaceful coexistence.
He urged them to verify all information before sharing it because not everything they heard was right, and words could either build peace or cause violence.
He also encouraged them to act as ambassadors of peace within their communities by actively challenging hate speech and misinformation whenever they arose.
GNA
Edited by Eric K. Amoh/Linda Asante Agyei