By Wifah Jennyhans & Moma Sandrine
Some fifty members of Cameroon Community Media Network, CCMN drawn from North West and West Regions of Cameroon have been schooled on Peace Journalism (PJ), and Peace Journalism reporting skills during a three day workshop.
Organised by CCMN in partnership with Presbyterian Peace Office and Civil Peace Service Cameroon, the workshop whose venue was moved from Bamenda to Bafoussam due to security reasons, had as focus training journalists on Peace Journalism principles and Electoral reporting.
on how to report conflicts
Facilitated by a veteran PJ crusader Prof. Steven Youngblood, Director of Center for Global Peace Journalism, participants during the three-day intensive classroom work were given in-depth skills on how to report stories in ways that would not inflame conflicts but mitigate them as well as guarantee reporters’ safety.
According to Prof. Youngblood “Peace Journalism is equal to good journalism; it is responsible and proactive journalism which is the kind of journalism we need in today’s society”. He argues that Peace Journalism does not in any way kill journalism, a view some media practitioners subscribe to.
“Peace journalism doesn’t mean you are advocating for peace nor advocating for solutions. We are merely giving peace makers and the voiceless a voice. It doesn’t make a reporter reject objectivity because Peace Journalism is first of all journalism” Prof. Youngblood explained.
Speaking to The SUN, some participants expressed a plethora of optimism in their practice after attending the workshop.
According to Abongwa Fodzo, CEO of Bamenda Online “…it has been a very enriching workshop. It has our perspective about peace journalism. Beyond this is the fact that we have learnt about journalism as a means to reconciliation. I think that if all the media men are equipped with the principles of peace journalism, we will certainly have a better society.”
Deng Eric, Manager of Boyo Community Radio thinks it is a tough but possible ride ahead “…I think that there is need for me to go back and inspire my collaborators and try to see how I can work with the population as far as promoting peace is concerned. I know it’s going to be difficult practicing peace journalism in my community but like Prof Youngblood said sometimes as a media personality, you have to take a middle position and avoid emotional reporting”
Far from being just peace talks, Maikem Emmanuella, Manager of NDEFCAM Radio acquired new communication lessons, “A big thing I learnt is the use of Public Service Announcements, PAs to convey messages to the public. Learning about the appropriate use of social media is a plus to my practice which I acquired during this workshop…now I think my tweets shall be better managed in a manner that will also earn me more public awareness as a journalist”.
In a region engulfed by numerous socio-political crises and internal conflicts, Alexander Vojvoda, Coordinator of Civil Peace Service Cameroon hopes that skills acquired by journalists in conflict and reconciliation reporting “…shall transform conflicts into a peaceful society as the network keeps growing, which is already structured in four regions of the country, that is: North West, West, South West and Centre Regions while we hope to touch on all ten regions”.