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Workshop on "Peace Journalism: On the
Road to Conflict Communication"
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Papers Presented
in the Workshop
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Organised by Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES)
18-20 August 2004, Godavari, Lalitpur
Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung organised a three-day
workshop on conflict reporting for Nepalese journalists at Godavari,
about 10 kilometres from south of Kathmandu, from August 18 to
20, 2004. The main theme of the workshop was "Peace Journalism:
On the Road to Conflict Communication" and a German expert
on conflict reporting, Mr Joergen Klussmann, was the principal
trainer.
Background
Conflict reporting is relatively news for
the Nepalese media in general. It is only since the Maoist conflict
escalated in 1996 that the media began to give special attention
to reporting events and developments concerning the conflict.
This also led the media to realise the need to understand the
sensitivities and complexities involved in conflict reporting.
The role of the media in conflict situation is crucial in many
ways. It can either play the role of a watchdog by taking a
critical look at the combatants while analysing the causes and
consequences of a war or it can play the role of a propagandist
trying to promote only one side while demonising the so-called
"enemy."
Since conflict reporting is a new area for
Nepalese journalists, training in this aspect of news events
is strongly felt and hence FES organised a highly successful
four-day training in November 2003. Given the excellent feedback
FES had from the participants and their editors regarding the
November 2003 training, FES decided to organise a three-day
training this year also, with the November training serving
as a basic model.
The objectives of the workshop were to:
a) Take a critical look at media functioning
and journalists' activities during war times.
b) Discuss the constructive role media can play in de-escalating
and even solving conflicts.
c) Enable journalists to understand conflict situations better
while going on field assignments to conflict-affected areas.
d) Deliberate on ways of producing unbiased reporting, with
special consideration for promoting peace.
Participants
A total of 15 participants, including six
women, attended the workshop. They represented different media
organisations and FES partner organisations. Both print and
broadcast people were among them. FES sent letters to the heads
of the organisations to nominate their representatives for the
workshop. Most of the participants were below the age of 30.
Resource Persons
While Mr Joergen Klussmann, the German expert
with considerable experience in conducting training on conflict
reporting, was the principal trainer, three local resource persons
made brief presentations on different aspects of conflict reporting.
The local resource persons were Mr Gokul Pokharel, President
of Nepal Press Institute; Mr Dhruba Hari Adhikari, a senior
freelance journalist; and Ms Nirmala Sharma, Executive Committee
Member of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists and editor
of Women's Features Service produced by Women Educators of Nepal.
Training Method
Interaction and participatory approach was
the main thrust of the workshop. This proved very successful,
given the enthusiasm with which the participants discussed issues,
raised queries and made suggestions.
Systemic constellations approach introduced
in some of the sessions engrossed the participants very much
and they appreciated it. Lectures, exercises and interactions
were part of the training.
Presentation Highlights
The resource persons placed special focus
on the main issues concerning conflict reporting. Definitions
of war and peace; history of conflict in Nepal and the role
of media; systemic constellation-the violent conflict and its
resolution in Nepal; how communication works in conflict situations;
non-violent communication and reconciliation and peace journalism;
systemic constellation-the journalist and war; and an exercise
on analysing the use of language were the main topics discussed
during the training.
Other issues that came up during the sessions
included the importance of free, fair and independent reporting
on the one hand, and, on the other, the significance of sensitive
reporting, accompanied by responsible media journalism that
can go a long way in maintaining professional standards, enhancing
media credibility and, at the same time, promoting better communication
in society and even resolving conflict and promoting peace.
The presence of an undaunted media having the skills and capacity
to present issues impartially and objectively can prove an asset
in strengthening the cause of peace and negotiations.
Access to information, building news sources
and maintaining fearless but responsible journalism were some
of the other points raised and discussed.
At the end of the workshop, the participants
made an evaluation of the training they attended and came up
with a number of suggestions, which related to their expectations
expressed on the first day of the workshop. In their list of
expectations, they had mentioned better skills in conflict reporting,
understanding issues pertaining to victims of conflict, difficulties
faced while reporting from conflict-hit areas, effective conflict
communication, and role and position of media during a conflict.
The participants described the workshop as
beneficial in enhancing their skills and in understanding the
various issues involved in conflict reporting and the contents
available to ignore or cover for news stories. There was a general
consensus among the participants who made the following suggestions:
1) In view of the quality and relevance of
the training workshop, more such training would benefit other
journalists.
2) The duration should be extended to at least a week.
3) Follow-up programmes on conflict reporting and peace journalism
will help journalists in understanding issues and improving
their writing abilities.
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