Roles as youth in preventing terrorism
Terrorism is a major global security threat.
Today, billions of dollars are spent worldwide to ensure security as people die often from terror-related activities.
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The United States Department of Defense (DOD) defines terrorism as "the unlawful use of violence or threat of violence to instil fear and coerce governments or societies."
A 2023 Global Terrorism Index report by the Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP) identifies the Sahel region in sub-Saharan Africa as the epicentre of terrorism.
The report discloses that the Sahel accounted for more terrorism deaths in 2022 than both South Asia and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) combined.
The report adds: “Of particular concern are two countries, Burkina Faso and Mali, which accounted for 73 per cent of terrorism deaths in the Sahel in 2022 and 52 per cent of all deaths from terrorism in sub-Saharan Africa".
The data is disturbing.
Ghana shares its northern border with Burkina Faso, a country that has seen an increase in terrorist attacks.
“No age, no culture, no religion, no nationality and no region is immune, but the situation in Africa is especially concerning,” said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, earlier this year.
Social media activism, engagements
The Ministry of National Security in tandem with other security agencies launched a national campaign in 2022 dubbed: "See something, say something", which seeks to encourage the public to be vigilant of the activities of suspicious characters and report such activities and characters to the security agencies.
As today's youth, social media is our home, playground and a source of information and awareness creation.
We can use our various social media handles to amplify "See something, say something" by using #hashtags every chance we get, organise online engagements with our peers and security agencies to discuss terrorism and its catastrophic effects, report suspicious activities and remind the public digitally about this agenda aimed at keeping the country safe.
Advocacy, volunteerism, community participation
Unemployment is an opportunity for terrorist organisations to exploit the youth.
We can speak up against initiatives and policies that may not be yielding enough opportunities for us.
We can volunteer to assist Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) with our time and skills in researching and educating citizens on security-related issues.
Engaging in community activities and events can be an avenue for us to have our voices heard.
Rejecting radicalisation
We must say a big no to radicalisation and extremist ideologies as it is one of the most effective means by terrorists and their organisations to recruit young persons for their heinous activities.
Their messages seek to create an environment of hatred and bigotry towards people of different beliefs, and cultures.
We must oppose these toxic messages whenever we hear them and develop a culture that promotes love, peace and tolerance.
This would keep us united against terrorism.
Knowledge, they say, is power and so for us to be empowered, we must do our best to be knowledgeable.
We must try and read books, listen to authentic news, heed advice from our elders in our societies, engage in healthy debates with our peers and use our creativity in music or other arts to gain an understanding of security-related issues.
Doing this would help us to gather reliable information and make us not consume and spread misinformation to others.
Conclusion
Many people are of the view that preventing terrorism is the job or sole responsibility of the government and our security agencies, but the nation belongs to us all and so, the youth have vital roles to play in keeping Ghana, our beautiful regions and communities safe.
We must, therefore, be proactive and do our best to keep our nation safe.
The writer is a development communicator.
E-mail: [email protected]