Justin Frosini Discusses Democracy in Ghana
Justin Frosini (Department of Law and Center for Constitutional Studies and Democratic Development) was one of seven leading scholars to present a case study, on Tuesday, November 15th, at the Constitutional Design And Conflict Management In Africa conference in Austin, Texas, promoted by the US Department of State backed Climate Change and African Political Stability (CCAPS) program.
His case study, Constitutional Design and Conflict Management in Ghana: The Dog that Doesn't Bite, but Sometimes Barks..., covers conflict-inducing shocks in Ghana.
Abstract: The first sub-Saharan Africa nation to gain independence, Ghana is often presented as a beacon of peace and democracy within Africa. From colonial rule, to parliamentary monarchy and the current presidential republic, the West African nation's six-decade trajectory towards democracy hasn't been without its pitfalls. How exactly has the young democracy maintained consistent overall stability despite the struggles within its path? As part of a larger Constitutional Design and Conflict Management (CDCM) project on climate change and African political stability, this paper examines six potential conflict-inducing "shocks" in Ghana's history against the backdrop of prevailing constitutional design, in an attempt to highlight specific cases where various apparatus – constitutional and otherwise – contributed to mitigating system shocks and widespread violent conflict. The analysis of the six shocks, namely the construction of the Volta Dam; the "Apollo 586 Episode and the Sallah Case"; the expulsion and return to Ghana of 1.5million Ghanaians from Nigeria in the 1980s, as well as the 1992, 2000, and 2008 presidential and parliamentary elections, offer a window of insight into the interplay of various social, economic, cultural and historical factors and the consequent multidimensionality of Ghana's political system, as well as key constitution reform suggestions for buttressing what many already consider to be a strong democracy in the African context.