The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has agreed to mediate in the Bawku conflict which has resulted in the deaths of many citizens.
Consequently, he called on all parties involved in the conflict to put aside their differences and work towards finding a peaceful solution.
He expressed his deep concern about the conflict and its potential to destroy the country’s unity and progress.
This development followed a meeting with a government delegation led by Defence Minister, Dr Edward Omane Boamah and Interior Minister, Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak, at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi, at the weekend.
The meeting was to discuss the ongoing conflict in Bawku in the Upper East Region, which has resulted in the loss of many lives and the displacement of thousands of people, and thus hindering the development of the area.
Dr Omane Boamah indicated that the government had been working to resolve the conflict through a combination of military and diplomatic efforts, which was underway to engage with the various parties involved in the conflict.
He acknowledged the pivotal role the Asantehene could play to resolve the conflict through traditional means as he had been very instrumental in leading the traditional aspect of peace process.
“The Asantehene has been the traditional leader who has been leading and finding traditional solution to disputes”, he said as he expressed the importance of chieftaincy in conflict resolution.
Dr Omane Boamah assured of the government’s commitment to complement the efforts of Asantehene with security intervention to restore peace.
He was optimistic that the collaboration between government and traditional leaders would yield a meaningful result.
In fact, the Bawku conflict is a longstanding ethnic and territorial dispute in the Upper East Region of Ghana, specifically in the Bawku Municipality.
The conflict revolves around a long-standing dispute between the Kusasi and Mamprusi ethnic groups over the ownership of the Bawku area, with the Kusasi claiming to be the original inhabitants of the area, while the Mamprusi argue that they were given control of the land by the British colonial authorities.
That has also fuelled the competition for resources such as land, water, and economic opportunities.
In the 1950s, the conflict began, during the colonial era, when the British authorities attempted to demarcate the boundary between the Kusasi and Mamprusi areas.
The conflict escalated in the 1980s, with clashes between the two groups resulting in loss of lives and property and continued in the 2000s, with periodic outbreaks of violence.
In 2022, the conflict flared up again with reports of clashes between the two groups, resulting in deaths and injuries.
And the clashes have been continuing, resulting in the displacement of thousands of people, with many forced to flee their homes and seek shelter in nearby towns and villages.
There have been reports of human rights abuses, including killings, injuries, and arrests, committed by both sides of the conflict.
Governments have intervened several times to try to resolve the conflict, including deploying security forces to the area and establishing a committee to investigate the conflict.
Traditional leaders from both sides of the conflict have also attempted to mediate a resolution, but so far, these efforts have been unsuccessful
One notable area of achievement of Asantehene has been his ability to use traditional diplomacy in resolving and brokering peace in many instances across the country.
It is recalled the Asantehene was mandated to lead a Committee of Eminent Chiefs that facilitated negotiation and mediation talks between the Andani and Abudu royal families, drawing and implementing a roadmap for the restoration of peace in the Kingdom of Dagbon.
The Asantehene was seen as the ideal lead to the conflict resolution process due to his reverence, leadership and impartiality
FROM KINGSLEY E.HOPE, KUMASI
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