by Linny Folau

Journalists from 10 Pacific Islands countries are participating in a three-day workshop focusing on the balanced reporting of news about women and children, and others outside the main stream of news.

The CEDAW Governance and Pacific Media Freedom Workshop at the International Dateline Hotel was officially opened this morning by Hon. Siaosi ...‘Aho, Tonga...’s Attorney General and Minister of Justice.

The media workshop is a build up to the Pacific Islands News Association biennial Conference which will be officially opened in Nuku'alofa on Friday November 18.

Voices not heard

Lisa Williams, the Women's Communication officer of the South Pacific Community (SPC) one of the two trainers at the workshop said that the main purpose of this workshop is to help media people do their job properly.

"I know the purpose is very broad in the sense but there are a lot of things that we do not do as media people, there is a lot of news and a lot of voices that we are not sharing with our audience and they tend to come from Pacific women, youth and children," she said.

Lisa said these are the sectors that are not really being heard or recognized in what we call the mainstream media where we tend to find the coverage of our leaders and politicians who are mostly men.

"I am not saying there is anything wrong with it but may be we need to bring in the voices of women and youths," in that way media becomes a true media because it is sharing everyone...’s voices for its audience who are men, women, youths and children so it is just being a bit fair in approaching our stories", said Lisa.

During the workshop topics would be discussed focusing on the Human Rights convention, which most of the Pacific Islands have committed to, excepting Tonga.

Lisa said Tonga has in its Constitution and in its Government Policies already embodied the commitment to those human rights such as the Convention for Eliminating Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and by focusing on human rights we look at men, women and children.

The workshop will also be sharing information and debate between regional media people and Tonga...’s key stakeholders on gender and governance for empowerment such as Cedaw and the Pacific Plan as well as applying knowledge of gender, language and reporting bias in terms of stereotypes of women in action for women in and through media.

Lisa added that at the end of this workshop she wants journalists to walk away asking questions. "I want them to ask questions about how are they doing their work, what they know, who they go to when they want to do a news story because there is nothing better then a journalist who knows how to ask good questions".

The workshop will conclude on November 16 by submitting in recommendations to the PINA conference either at the end of the week or next week.

Regional journalists participating include Lave Tuiletufuga of Samoa Broadcasting Commission, Vijay Narayan of Communications Fiji Ltd, Walter Nalangu of the Solomon Islands Broadcasting Commission, Matai Akauola of Fiji Broadcasting Commission, Titi Gabi of the Papua New Guinea FM, Tamani Nair of PAC News Fiji and Melali Taape of the Tuvalu Media Corporation as well as local media participants.