Internews
(November 12, 2008) In 2007, Yemen ranked last out of the 128 countries considered in the World Economic Forum’s annual Gender Gap Index, signifying the persistence of serious gender-based inequalities.
To address these inequalities and bring women’s voices to the fore, Internews Network is empowering Yemeni youth and media professionals to explore sensitive issues concerning gender, society, and human rights.
In partnership with the Yemeni Women’s Media Forum (YWMF), Internews Network has begun holding a series of town hall meetings across Yemen to address these issues. Young people and professional journalists will be trained in radio production through the project, “Yemeni Voices: Women and Youth in Support of Free Media.” The project will culminate with the production of 15 thirty-minute radio programs, which will be aired on national and mainstream media.
Internews and the Yemeni Women’s Media Forum held the first town hall meeting in Sana’a, the capital of Yemen, on October 22. Over 30 different organizations and NGOs were represented by more than 50 delegates from across Sana'a.
The participants formed three working groups to discuss topics for the radio programs in the areas of education, health, the environment, and human rights. Each group offered 12 to 15 ideas for future production. Suggested program topics ranged from child marriage to the use of weapons in Sana’a neighborhoods.
Participants were universally enthusiastic about the program. "The idea of creating working groups and coming up with results is the best way to show the transparency of the programs, and I hope that at least one of my ideas will be realized with this project through a real radio program," said Radia Khairan, a member of the Hood Organization.
“Yemeni Voices: Women and Youth in Support of Free Media” is supported by a grant from the US Department of State.
Showing posts with label radio. Show all posts
Showing posts with label radio. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Saudi Arabia: Women in Saudi media under fire
By Abdul Rahman Shaheen, Correspondent
Published: March 30, 2009, 23:52
Riyadh: Thirty-five prominent Saudi figures including scholars, university professors, judges, imams, researchers and government officials have warned the minister of culture and information against the prominence being given to women in the media. They described the projection of women in the media as a "phenomenon exceeding proper bounds of Sharia".
In a letter addressed to Dr Abdul Aziz Khoja, a copy of which was placed on the website Nurul Islam, the hardliners underlined the need for strictly adhering into the Kingdom's media policy, which prohibits women, including singers and artists, from appearing in the media. The statement, which was also carried by Al Madinah Arabic daily, urged scholars and reformers to examine the matter and come out with their proposals.
The 35 signatories of the statement included Shaikh Abdul Rahman Al Barak, Shaikh Abdul Rahman Al Mahmoud, member of the faculty of Usooluddin at Imam Mohammad Bin Saud University of Riyadh, and Shaikh Abdullah Al Sulaiman, judicial supervisor at the Ministry of Justice. They urged the minister to establish a supervisory Sharia committee at the ministry in cooperation with the Ifta Department, in line with Article 15 of the Media Policy of the Ministry of Culture and Information.
The signatories hoped the minister would undertake media reforms after rooting out "deviation" as far as radio, television, press, literary clubs and book fairs are concerned.
The statement, which was also carried by the Saudi news website Al Masdar, heavily criticised "plans to Westernise Saudi women and deprive them of their legal rights while travelling, as well as gender-mixing, opening doors for clashes with liberal ideologies, giving prominence for staging songs and playing musical instruments by women, publishing women's pictures, allowing women singers and broadcasters to mix with men at the ministry building, allowing entry of obscene newspapers and magazines with sexy pictures of women inside the pages and folders into the Kingdom", and described that all these are "no doubt, prohibited by Sharia".
According to the hardliners, all these phenomena are contrary to the laws of the country, royal decrees and the media policy of the Kingdom.
"This also involves violation of Article 7 in Item 2 of the Basic Governing System, which says that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shall be governed by the Book of God and the Tradition of the Prophet (PBUH).
The statement also drew attention to the fact these trends were also in violation of the Royal Decree No 2/4185, which prevents the staging of any dance programme involving women or appearance of female singers or news readers on television.
The decree also prevents the appearance of any types of pictures of women on newspapers or magazines for any reasons. The statement urged the minister to grant permission for a meeting with a delegation of 10 of the signatories to discuss the matter.
Published: March 30, 2009, 23:52
Riyadh: Thirty-five prominent Saudi figures including scholars, university professors, judges, imams, researchers and government officials have warned the minister of culture and information against the prominence being given to women in the media. They described the projection of women in the media as a "phenomenon exceeding proper bounds of Sharia".
In a letter addressed to Dr Abdul Aziz Khoja, a copy of which was placed on the website Nurul Islam, the hardliners underlined the need for strictly adhering into the Kingdom's media policy, which prohibits women, including singers and artists, from appearing in the media. The statement, which was also carried by Al Madinah Arabic daily, urged scholars and reformers to examine the matter and come out with their proposals.
The 35 signatories of the statement included Shaikh Abdul Rahman Al Barak, Shaikh Abdul Rahman Al Mahmoud, member of the faculty of Usooluddin at Imam Mohammad Bin Saud University of Riyadh, and Shaikh Abdullah Al Sulaiman, judicial supervisor at the Ministry of Justice. They urged the minister to establish a supervisory Sharia committee at the ministry in cooperation with the Ifta Department, in line with Article 15 of the Media Policy of the Ministry of Culture and Information.
The signatories hoped the minister would undertake media reforms after rooting out "deviation" as far as radio, television, press, literary clubs and book fairs are concerned.
The statement, which was also carried by the Saudi news website Al Masdar, heavily criticised "plans to Westernise Saudi women and deprive them of their legal rights while travelling, as well as gender-mixing, opening doors for clashes with liberal ideologies, giving prominence for staging songs and playing musical instruments by women, publishing women's pictures, allowing women singers and broadcasters to mix with men at the ministry building, allowing entry of obscene newspapers and magazines with sexy pictures of women inside the pages and folders into the Kingdom", and described that all these are "no doubt, prohibited by Sharia".
According to the hardliners, all these phenomena are contrary to the laws of the country, royal decrees and the media policy of the Kingdom.
"This also involves violation of Article 7 in Item 2 of the Basic Governing System, which says that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shall be governed by the Book of God and the Tradition of the Prophet (PBUH).
The statement also drew attention to the fact these trends were also in violation of the Royal Decree No 2/4185, which prevents the staging of any dance programme involving women or appearance of female singers or news readers on television.
The decree also prevents the appearance of any types of pictures of women on newspapers or magazines for any reasons. The statement urged the minister to grant permission for a meeting with a delegation of 10 of the signatories to discuss the matter.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Jordan: Community Radio Station Tackles Issues Affecting Women and Youth
Internews
(March 5, 2009) Farah Al Nas, a Internews-founded community radio station in Jordan that focuses on women and youth issues, is tackling topics that are usually taboo on the airwaves.
Based in Amman, the station recently held a week-long campaign dealing with violence against women that featured the voices of women affected by violence. It was a rare moment to hear women talking openly on the air about their experiences of rape and domestic violence.
In January, when a six-year old child was killed by a truck in the residential area of Abu Alanda, community members grew upset at how many children had been injured or killed by trucks passing through that neighborhood. Working with all affected parties, Farah Al Nas held a successful campaign to ban trucks from entering the area.
“I am very happy with what we have achieved so far at Farah Al Nas,” said Haitham Atoom, the station manager. “Our programs are out there, people are listening and we are responsive to their requests. I have great expectations for Farah Al Nas.”
Internews trains and supports young people ages 10 to 24 to operate the radio station. The young journalists learn the technical and journalistic skills needed to operate a community radio station.
Run by and for the local community, Farah Al Nas produces three main programs dealing with women, youth and social issues:
“Woman Today,” broadcast twice weekly, deals with issues such as women’s right to education, a career, and life and discrimination against women whether judicial or societal. It also stresses the importance of empowering women financially and intellectually . Some topics of discussion are: Jordanian women’s right to give their nationality to their children; the right to get promoted based on qualifications rather than gender; the right to all vacations as per the labor law; and injustice to women due to the what so called “honor crimes” and sexual harassment.
“Youth” deals with the concerns and aspirations of young people and is aired three times weekly.
Min Qalb El Nass (“From the Heart of the People”) deals with people’s daily concerns
Farah Al Nas began broadcasting in May of 2008 and was established by Internews Network, the Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development (JOHUD) and the Jordanian National Commission for Women (JNCW) through a grant from the US Department of State.
(March 5, 2009) Farah Al Nas, a Internews-founded community radio station in Jordan that focuses on women and youth issues, is tackling topics that are usually taboo on the airwaves.
Based in Amman, the station recently held a week-long campaign dealing with violence against women that featured the voices of women affected by violence. It was a rare moment to hear women talking openly on the air about their experiences of rape and domestic violence.
In January, when a six-year old child was killed by a truck in the residential area of Abu Alanda, community members grew upset at how many children had been injured or killed by trucks passing through that neighborhood. Working with all affected parties, Farah Al Nas held a successful campaign to ban trucks from entering the area.
“I am very happy with what we have achieved so far at Farah Al Nas,” said Haitham Atoom, the station manager. “Our programs are out there, people are listening and we are responsive to their requests. I have great expectations for Farah Al Nas.”
Internews trains and supports young people ages 10 to 24 to operate the radio station. The young journalists learn the technical and journalistic skills needed to operate a community radio station.
Run by and for the local community, Farah Al Nas produces three main programs dealing with women, youth and social issues:
“Woman Today,” broadcast twice weekly, deals with issues such as women’s right to education, a career, and life and discrimination against women whether judicial or societal. It also stresses the importance of empowering women financially and intellectually . Some topics of discussion are: Jordanian women’s right to give their nationality to their children; the right to get promoted based on qualifications rather than gender; the right to all vacations as per the labor law; and injustice to women due to the what so called “honor crimes” and sexual harassment.
“Youth” deals with the concerns and aspirations of young people and is aired three times weekly.
Min Qalb El Nass (“From the Heart of the People”) deals with people’s daily concerns
Farah Al Nas began broadcasting in May of 2008 and was established by Internews Network, the Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development (JOHUD) and the Jordanian National Commission for Women (JNCW) through a grant from the US Department of State.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Jordan: Women make waves in Jordan Valley
By Suha Philip Ma’ayeh, Foreign Correspondent for The National
AMMAN // For the past year, Muneera Shatti and Asma Raja, two young women from the Jordan Valley, have broadcast a weekly radio show that tackles the issues faced by their impoverished community, from a lack of buses and the theft of water, to boys using mobile phones to take photos of schoolgirls.
The work is not without challenges as the tribal-dominated valley on which they report is staunchly conservative and one of 20 pockets of poverty where the average income is about US$1,800 (Dh6,624) per year.
“At first there were men who refused to be interviewed by us. They would say, ‘You are women’. But they got used to us. Just last week I interviewed young men in a cafe to gauge their views regarding public services,” Ms Shatti said. “Interviewing men is something I would have never imagined myself doing before I became a correspondent for the radio.”
In one programme, Ms Shatti reported on the lack of buses connecting her town with a nearby village. Within a week, the Jordan Valley Authority responded and provided the needed bus.
“That was encouraging even though later the bus was taken away as other bus drivers protested that it was affecting their business.”
In another broadcast, Ms Raja, 24, reported on water theft.
“Farmers were stealing water from the main pipes, depriving residents of drinking water. I talked to a senior water official who promised to provide citizens with another source of water while the government closed some of the pipes to try to stop those from stealing. Since then, water theft has declined.”
Because the women do not have a licence to broadcast in their community, Radio Al Balad, an Amman-based community radio, produces and hosts their show, called the Voice of the Valley.
The women take three buses to get to Amman to broadcast the show, but for them, the trip is worth it.
Radio Al Balad has been pushing hard to get a licence to launch the first all-women community radio in Jordan.
But last month, the government turned down the licence application without giving a reason. The country’s laws do not oblige the government to explain why it rejects applications.
The decision, however, has frustrated Daoud Kuttab, the founder of Radio Al Balad, who has been trying to launch Zaharat Alghor, the Flower of the Valley, which would not broadcast news or political programmes.
“We were excited. It is a station run by women. It was supposed to be a women empowerment station. We were already seeing success in the one-hour programme,” he said. “If the government did not want to give us a licence, then why entertain our application in the first place? It took us a year and a half to fulfil the requirements of the application, including paying $15,000 for the initiation licence fee. We rented offices [in the Jordan Valley], too.”
In 2002, Jordan liberalised its airwaves and a year later created an audiovisual commission tasked with licensing independent satellite and radio stations. Since then, 26 independent stations have been granted licences, most of whom provide music, entertainment and social programmes. Seven have licences for news and political programmes.
It is 50 per cent more expensive to get a licence for a news and political broadcast because, according to insiders, the AVC believes the latter generates more advertisements, while sceptics see it as another restriction on media freedom.
It is the second time in two years that the government has rejected an application by Mr Kuttab for a community radio licence, raising some speculation that the decision was motivated by personal reasons.
Conservative officials are concerned that community radio in a traditional society could create problems among tribes and upset their social and cultural values.
Mr Kuttab has also been criticised for allowing Palestinian refugees from Gaza to make their plea for citizenship on his radio programmes. Jordan sees such a policy as serving the interest of Israel because the refugees would then no longer be able to apply to return to Israel.
Because Radio Al Balad is licensed to broadcast only in Amman, residents in the Jordan Valley can only hear the programme by tuning into Al Qamr radio station in Jericho, a West Bank city on the other side of the Jordan Valley.
Mr Kuttab had signed an agreement with Al Qamr to rebroadcast the show until he was able to obtain a licence. The programme can also be heard online, but only 16 per cent of Jordanian households have internet access.
Mr Kuttab has made it clear in editorials and blogs that he is not happy with the AVC’s decision. But Hussein Bani Hani, the AVC head, argued the government had acted in the interest of investors.
“The government wants to give a chance for every investor. We want to give equal opportunities to all,” he said. “All the governorates are covered with radio stations, and we have community stations in several universities that also provide training for university students on media broadcasting.
“The stations tackle different subjects in different communities and broadcast social programmes which vary from women and child issues to youth issues. They are funded by organisations involved in media development.”
Although the community radio stations have been welcomed in most areas, there are some criticism that they are not completely independent.
Ms Shatti and Ms Raja were discouraged at first by the government’s decision not to grant them a licence. They closed the offices that Radio Al Balad had rented for them last week. But the women said they will continue to broadcast from Amman.
“I will not let the licence get me down. I will continue to work to make the voices of people in remote areas heard,” Ms Raja said.
AMMAN // For the past year, Muneera Shatti and Asma Raja, two young women from the Jordan Valley, have broadcast a weekly radio show that tackles the issues faced by their impoverished community, from a lack of buses and the theft of water, to boys using mobile phones to take photos of schoolgirls.
The work is not without challenges as the tribal-dominated valley on which they report is staunchly conservative and one of 20 pockets of poverty where the average income is about US$1,800 (Dh6,624) per year.
“At first there were men who refused to be interviewed by us. They would say, ‘You are women’. But they got used to us. Just last week I interviewed young men in a cafe to gauge their views regarding public services,” Ms Shatti said. “Interviewing men is something I would have never imagined myself doing before I became a correspondent for the radio.”
In one programme, Ms Shatti reported on the lack of buses connecting her town with a nearby village. Within a week, the Jordan Valley Authority responded and provided the needed bus.
“That was encouraging even though later the bus was taken away as other bus drivers protested that it was affecting their business.”
In another broadcast, Ms Raja, 24, reported on water theft.
“Farmers were stealing water from the main pipes, depriving residents of drinking water. I talked to a senior water official who promised to provide citizens with another source of water while the government closed some of the pipes to try to stop those from stealing. Since then, water theft has declined.”
Because the women do not have a licence to broadcast in their community, Radio Al Balad, an Amman-based community radio, produces and hosts their show, called the Voice of the Valley.
The women take three buses to get to Amman to broadcast the show, but for them, the trip is worth it.
Radio Al Balad has been pushing hard to get a licence to launch the first all-women community radio in Jordan.
But last month, the government turned down the licence application without giving a reason. The country’s laws do not oblige the government to explain why it rejects applications.
The decision, however, has frustrated Daoud Kuttab, the founder of Radio Al Balad, who has been trying to launch Zaharat Alghor, the Flower of the Valley, which would not broadcast news or political programmes.
“We were excited. It is a station run by women. It was supposed to be a women empowerment station. We were already seeing success in the one-hour programme,” he said. “If the government did not want to give us a licence, then why entertain our application in the first place? It took us a year and a half to fulfil the requirements of the application, including paying $15,000 for the initiation licence fee. We rented offices [in the Jordan Valley], too.”
In 2002, Jordan liberalised its airwaves and a year later created an audiovisual commission tasked with licensing independent satellite and radio stations. Since then, 26 independent stations have been granted licences, most of whom provide music, entertainment and social programmes. Seven have licences for news and political programmes.
It is 50 per cent more expensive to get a licence for a news and political broadcast because, according to insiders, the AVC believes the latter generates more advertisements, while sceptics see it as another restriction on media freedom.
It is the second time in two years that the government has rejected an application by Mr Kuttab for a community radio licence, raising some speculation that the decision was motivated by personal reasons.
Conservative officials are concerned that community radio in a traditional society could create problems among tribes and upset their social and cultural values.
Mr Kuttab has also been criticised for allowing Palestinian refugees from Gaza to make their plea for citizenship on his radio programmes. Jordan sees such a policy as serving the interest of Israel because the refugees would then no longer be able to apply to return to Israel.
Because Radio Al Balad is licensed to broadcast only in Amman, residents in the Jordan Valley can only hear the programme by tuning into Al Qamr radio station in Jericho, a West Bank city on the other side of the Jordan Valley.
Mr Kuttab had signed an agreement with Al Qamr to rebroadcast the show until he was able to obtain a licence. The programme can also be heard online, but only 16 per cent of Jordanian households have internet access.
Mr Kuttab has made it clear in editorials and blogs that he is not happy with the AVC’s decision. But Hussein Bani Hani, the AVC head, argued the government had acted in the interest of investors.
“The government wants to give a chance for every investor. We want to give equal opportunities to all,” he said. “All the governorates are covered with radio stations, and we have community stations in several universities that also provide training for university students on media broadcasting.
“The stations tackle different subjects in different communities and broadcast social programmes which vary from women and child issues to youth issues. They are funded by organisations involved in media development.”
Although the community radio stations have been welcomed in most areas, there are some criticism that they are not completely independent.
Ms Shatti and Ms Raja were discouraged at first by the government’s decision not to grant them a licence. They closed the offices that Radio Al Balad had rented for them last week. But the women said they will continue to broadcast from Amman.
“I will not let the licence get me down. I will continue to work to make the voices of people in remote areas heard,” Ms Raja said.
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