UNESCO
for panishment of crimes against journalists
Radio
Mozambique's initial activities started
Media Women's
componet set to take off
Independent
media capacity building initiated
Monitoring CRs
programme's profiles
UNESCO
FOR PUNISHMENT OF CRIMES AGAINST JOURNALISTS
"Unpunished Crimes against Journalists: A Strategy for Reducing
Impunity" was the theme of this years World Press Freedom Day on May 3
celebrations, held in Kingston, Jamaica. To discuss this and other
related subjects, UNESCO organised a 2-day International Conference
entitled: Freedom of Expression: Early New Millennium Challenges".
In the present times of war and violent conflict, the question
concerning the safety of journalists when and because of their
professional duties is now being seen as a burning issue worldwide: in
2002 alone, a total of 46 journalists have been killed in 20 countries
and territories, with at least 136 other serving imprisonment sentences
in 27 countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe. At least 274
journalists were killed in war zones between 1990 and 2002. In the SADC
region, at least 27 journalists have been physically harassed, four were
bomb-attacked, and 45 detained, 38 threatened and 40 saw their works
censured.
In Kingston, Jamaica, UNESCO - who in 1991 proclaimed May 3 as the World
Press Freedom Day, in line with the Windhoek Declaration on Media
Freedom - organised a high level International Conference that focused
on the "safety of journalists" subject. The Conference brought together
media experts and professionals as well as representatives of
professional non-governmental organisations and government ministers,
who discussed strategies to counter the tendency to let the crimes
against journalists unpunished.
The problem of impunity on crimes against journalists gave rise to a
UNESCO resolution, adopted on November 12, 1997, which calls on States
to remove any statute of limitations on crimes against persons when such
crimes are "perpetrated to prevent the exercise of freedom of
information and expression or when their purpose is the obstruction of
justice".
In Mozambique, the World Press Freedom Day celebrations were jointly
organised by the Media Project, MISA national chapter and the National
Union of Journalists (SNJ), who gathered journalists and friends for a
festive ceremony, during which MISA launched the "Journalists under
fire" campaign and the report on freedom of the media status in the
region entitled "S this is Democracy?"
Radio
Mozambiqu's initial activitis started
The process leading to the strengthening of management capacity of
RM's Provincial Delegations, trough the development of
individual strategic plans has already started, with initial field
missions to Lichinga and Chimoio during March and May.
With a view to facilitate a much open participatory planning process,
that should be based on a well know local reality the activities already
carried out in provincial capitals of Niassa and Manica consisted of:
familiarization with the present evironment around the two stations,
including quality of available human and technical resources, the
external world, with its opportunities and threats for a sustainable,
mid term vision strategic plan, towards a gradual decentralization of
the provinceial stations.
One first, positive indication inspiring for the
success of the initiatives relates to the prevalence of a generalized,
open atmosphere among all potential local partners, including the public
sector in general, now working under three to five year strategic plans,
locally designet, and with space to accommodate the communication sector
as a whole, the public service radio in the particular.
Media
Women's componet set to take off
The Media Project has just reactivated its women
journalist's specific component, in a half day working meeting
with women professionals from different media organization and parts of
the country in May.
The meeting advised the project to implement the four
areas (MA studies and travel grants, training and workshops) component
through basic jornalism training courses for junior women journalists,
leardership skills development, editorial and administrative management
training activities as well as through specific actions designed to
stimulate a generally improved gender balance in the editorial producers
of the national media.
A small follow-up activities working group was then
established integrating the project the Women's Forum and the Media
Women Association (AMCS) to draft terms of reference for eligible
training courses and correspondence eligibility creiteira for the
potencial beneficiaries of the component.
Independent
media capacity building initiated
A prolonged, comprehensive and tailor-made management
capacity building for independent publications has already started,
covering a total of five selected newspapers from Niassa to Maputo, and
including Nampula.
The Media Project has subcontracted Afrisurvey a consulting firm, to
carry out this process, which main aim is to equip
publications with sound managerial skills for their editorial and
administrative long term susteinability.The selected newspaperd are:
Amanhecer and Faisca, in Lichinga(Niassa), Wampula fax (Nampula), Demos
and Vertical (Maputo).
The programme, sheduled to last until the end of the
year, has been designed to cover crucial areas such as: the designing of
strategic plans, the adoption of style books, financial and
administrative routines and regulations.
Monitoring
CRs programme's profiles
Is the main objective envisaged with a series of
field visits being carried out by a specialist subcontracted by the
Media Projec, who has been assisting the community radios with audience
researches and assessing the impact of these stations in their
respeitive communities. The specialist, Nélia Taimo, has already been to
Chimoio Bagamoio, and Dondo , also establishing simple, but efficient
systems to assess listeners opinion on the programming profiles.