Human Rights and Security Agencies

From time to time, security agency agents have been involved in an act or another that violates the human rights of citizens.

These offenses are usually in the form of physical badaults against citizens for allegedly committing a crime or the other.

The perpetrators of such human rights violations are often members of the Ghana Armed Forces and the Ghana Police Service. Reports often show that the staff of these two security agencies aggressively attack citizens without resorting to the rights of their victims.

These are institutions that are supposed to protect the lives and property of citizens whose taxes pay for the subsistence of these institutions. Again, these are institutions whose staff is supposed to know the rights of citizens and who are aware of the consequences of the violation of these rights

Human Rights Boundaries Affect Dignity and Respect of human life. In fact, the international and common standard of human rights is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).

Articles 1, 3 and 5 of the UDHR all affirm the importance of respect for the rights of all human beings. Article 1, "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and must act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.Article 3" Everyone has the right life, liberty and security of person "and article 5" No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. "

Chapter 5 of the Constitution of the Republic of Ghana of 1992, "Fundamental Human Rights and Freedoms" (Respect for Human Dignity), Article 15 (2): "No one may, whether or not he arrested, restricted or detained, is subject to: (a) torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment;

(b) any other condition that affects or threatens to impair his dignity and worth as a human being. [19659003] With the current situation of human rights violations being perpetuated by staff of the Ghana Police Service and the Ghana Armed Forces, one can only ask if these personnel from these two security agencies receive training in the field of human rights violations. human rights or they understand what are human rights

Undoubtedly, the beating of a woman in a banking hall, l & # 39; attacking journalists in the performance of their duties at national events and demonstrations, the brutalization of citizens who are in possession of military uniforms and a host of other human rights violations Men show that these security agencies provide little or no human rights training to their staff.

No true Ghanaian is ever happy about the failures of these two security agencies. In fact, every citizen is proud of the successes of these two security agencies. At the international level, these two security agencies have made a name for themselves and it is a feat of which every citizen is proud.

For example, the Ghana Police Service was ranked among the top 10 on the African continent, while the Ghana Armed Forces have an enviable reputation in United Nations peacekeeping missions.

How is it that at the international level, these security agencies are the subject of so much praise? abuse the human rights of their fellow citizens?

It is recognized that the work of the staff of these two security agencies can be quite difficult; However, it takes a certain level of skill. This is because the recognition of the inherent dignity and equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peaceful coexistence.

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Alex Blege
is a freelance journalist. kw.amehotmail.com/ [email protected]