Govt urged to set up early warning system to deal with conflicts

Accra, June 16, GNA- General Arnold Quainoo, (rtd) Executive Director, Centre for Conflict Resolution (CENCOR) on Saturday urged government to set up an early warning and guard system to deal with the management of conflicts in the country.

Gen. Quainoo, who was also the first ECOMOG Commander in Liberia said such a system would be able to prevent minor conflicts from degenerating into violent ones.

Gen. Quainoo made the appeal at a two-day peace festival organized by the West African Dispute Resolution Centre (WADREC) in Accra on the theme: "The Youth as Instruments of Peace".

"History has taught us one lesson; that we cannot afford to take peace for granted in this country," he said. Gen. Quainoo said even though the country had invested in peace building initiatives in the last decade it was important for government to do more to help maintain the peace in the country adding; "There should be a fundamental shift in attitudes of people towards each other in this country".

He said the role of Non-Governmental Organisations was key towards achieving peace-building initiatives and that concerted efforts were needed to address the problem. He said, for the country to achieve long-lasting peace, there was the need to involve the youth in peace-building initiatives adding, "We should encourage them to study peace-building initiatives as physics and mathematics".

Ms. Georgette Francoi, Executive Director, WADREC, said research had shown that the youth were increasingly being used as instruments of violence and that there was the need to inculcate peace building values and mediation efforts in them to help them manage conflicts at the grassroot level.

Ms. Francoi said women and children were the first casualties of wars and that it was important for them to be mainstreamed into the crusade against conflicts in the country. The festival brought together students from the Presbyterian Secondary School, (PRESEC) Legon, Labone Secondary School, Tema Senior Secondary School, St. Theresa Junior Secondary School, Accra Academy Senior Secondary School and Dansoman 4 Junior Secondary School.