Indeed the role played by the Women Situation Room in Ghana’s 2016 General election invaluably contributed to the country’s transparent and peaceful election and must be applauded by all Ghanaians. The Women took the bull by the horn and Campaigned heavily to draw the attention of Ghanaians to the horrendous consequences of electoral violence. The goal of the Women’s Situation Room (WSR) is to eliminate obstacles to women’s participation in electoral processes, especially violence against women in all its forms, which has been identified as a major obstacle to women’s involvement in political affairs.
On 17 November 2016, the Women’s Situation Room Ghana was launched in Accra to set up a Women Situation Room in Ghana to ensure a Peaceful electoral process in Ghana’s Presidential and Parliamentary election. The Women Situation Room led by the Eminent Ghanaian Women including Ms Gertrude Oforiwa Fefoame, Prof Ama Ata Aidoo, Ms Afi Yakubu, Hajia Safuratu M. Andabi, Naa Koteitsoo Afrasomanaso I, Ms Sabina Ofori Boateng and Prof Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu employed several Peace Building mechanisms and diverse activities across the 10 Regions of Ghana.
The National Coordinator Ms. Adwoa Bame and the host of able regional Coordinators of WSR undertook series of Peace Building dialogues with several key stakeholders including the security agencies, Electoral Commission, Peace Council, NCCE, Religious and Traditional leaders, Political Party leaders, Media, Youth groups, civil society groups among others who have direct or indirect roles to play to ensure Peace before, during and after Ghana’s December 7 general election.
In order to enhance the active involvement of women in mitigating the incidence of violence, WSR organized a special workshop for the Women Organizers of the 6 main Political Parties (thus NPP, NDC, PPP, CPP, NDP and PNC) to highlight the role they must play to ensure Peace in the electioneering process and to pledge their commitment to contribute to Peace Building.
Again, WSR organized a nationwide 1000 Women Peace March in all the 10 regional capitals of Ghana consisting of several Women groups who openly displayed their unfaltering call for Peace before, during and after the election hence, demanded the commitment of the major political parties to commit to Peace irrespective of the outcome of the election.
Moreover, WSR challenged the Youth of Ghana to pledge their readiness to commit to Peace by passing a Youth Peace Torch through all the 90 identified hotspots and across the 10 regional capitals. The Youth Peace Torch Program immensely trumpeted the need for the youth to act peacefully before, during and after the December 7 election on radio and on social media platforms coupled with the Youth Peace Torch Float through the principal streets of selected towns and cities.
Unarguably, the role played by the 400 women observers at various polling stations during the election day yielded its intended purpose of deliberately involving women in the Electoral process in an impartial and non partisan manner.
WSR again deployed 120 Focal Persons to 90 hotspots to identify and report early warning signs which have the potential of actuating election related violence especially against women. The activities of the focal persons was beefed up by the introduction of a Toll Free number which allowed all persons to report any incidence of violence to the physical situation room set up by WSR.
The Women Situation Room since its inception in Africa in 2011 in Liberia has contributed immensely to the realization of Peaceful elections in many other countries across Africa – in Senegal and Sierra Leone in 2012, Kenya in 2013, Mali in 2013, Guinea Bissau in 2014, Nigeria in 2015, and Uganda on 2016.
The WSR as initiated by Councilor Yvette Chesson-Wureh, has once again proved to be a powerful peacebuilding platform that rallies women, youth, media, stakeholders, professionals, religious and traditional personalities and institutions to ensure a transparent and peaceful electoral process.
The Women’s Situation Room in Ghana is supported by the Government of Norway and Canada, UN Women, the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS), and UNDP
Story by: George K. Antwi
