FWCC holds first ever ‘Editors Dialogue’

4 Dec, 2020

The Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre in partnership with the Fijian Media Association held a first ever ‘Editors Dialogue’ in Suva today.
The aim of the dialogue, co-facilitated with the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement and Femlink Pacific, was to improve reporting on violence against women and girls and the portrayal of women in the media.
Speaking at the event, FWCC Coordinator Shamima Ali said the dialogue with the leaders of the major media organisations in Fiji recognizes the influence of the media and its ability to reach communities.

She said the dialogue is the beginning of a conversation with media organisations in Fiji on how it can reflect on its existing practices of reporting on violence against women and coverage of women in the media more generally.

“While the dialogue is a first of its kind and a key activity for the 16 Days of Activism, its purpose is to work with and collaborate with the media to improve coverage of violence against women and girls throughout and beyond the campaign period,” Ms Ali said.

She said women in Fiji experience high rates of domestic violence and sexual violence, with increased use of violence and control by their male partners during COVID-19 restrictions.

“This makes it imperative that organisations collaborate with the media to ensure that reporting of violence against women and women’s experiences of violence is done with a sensitized lens that is victim centered and through an analysis which shows a greater understanding of the gendered nature of violence against women,” Ms Ali said.

On the issue of coverage in the media, she said there is still a huge disparity with how both, the government and the media recognize and acknowledge the efforts of women despite their enormous contribution to nation building.

The dialogue identified opportunities to improve reporting on violence against women and the coverage of women in the media and reflected on existing approaches on the coverage of violence against women and girls.

The FWCC looks forward to developing a comprehensive gender, violence against women and human rights training tailored for the media and the formulation of media guidelines on reporting on violence against women and girls.

Ends…

For more information please call Shamima Ali on 9992875