Nkonya and Alavanyo in another attempt at peace

Nkonya and Alavanyo are involved in a fresh attempt at peace in the more than 90 years bloodletting over land.

The latest attempt under the auspices of the Volta Regional Co-coordinating Council (VRCC) resulted in the two traditional areas signing flags of peace as part of world peace day in September.

They are billed to hold a peace durbar at Kpando on Sunday December 20, to seal the peace accord.

Helen Adjoa Ntoso, Regional Minister was upbeat about success, downgrading cases of isolated incidents of shootings in the two traditional areas as
“criminal acts by individuals,” unrelated to the communal land dispute.

She sounded positive about success in the latest initiative at peace, as she cited instances of solving intractable conflicts as Eastern Regional Minister and so far in some cases as Volta Regional Minister.

The Alavanyo and Nkonya Peace Mediation Committee put together by the VRCC in collaboration with the Ho Diocese of the Catholic Church and the Evangelical Presbyterian Church from 2002 to 2009 was on the brink of achieving lasting peace attracting the attention of the United Nations but stalled in 2009 giving rise to renewed violence since then.

That Committee had established local structures which enable the two traditional areas to engage each other to iron out their differences and suspicions leading to the restoration of social interactions between them using both traditional and Christian approaches.

The Committee was chaired by Very Reverend Dr Livingstone Komla Buamah former Moderator of the E.P. Church, Ghana and Bishop Emeritus Kofi Anani Lodonu then Bishop of the Ho Diocese, who helped provide funding for the activities of the Committee.

Other members of that Committee were Mrs Hillary Gbedemah, Legal Practitioner, Mrs Felicia Okyere-Darko then Chief State-Attorney, Volta Region, Nana Mprah Besemuna, Krachiwura and Mr Evans Kamfra, then of the VRCC as Secretary.