Ten Darfuri trained in radio journalism
September 29, 2008 (EL FASHER) – Participants in the first radio journalism training course organized by the Communication and Public Information Division (CPID) of UNAMID, the African Union – United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur, were presented certificates Sunday after one month of intensive training in basic radio journalism.
The ten participants are the first class to graduate from training sessions for Darfuri that will take place in El Fasher and Khartoum between September and December 2008, and were selected from over 1,500 applicants from North, South, and West Darfur.
The UNAMID Director of Communication and Public Information Kemal Saiki addresed the trainees, saying, “if you come across as a competent and honest voice, you will make a difference and have an impact on the lives of the people … They are listening to you not merely because of your personality, but for what you represent and what you convey.”
This training aims at building capacity for a UNAMID radio broadcast operation for Darfur, and developing local radio program content for Darfuri. It will also serve UNAMID’s efforts of promoting journalism standards in Darfur, as some of the trainees who will not join UNAMID Radio will join local media.
After receiving their certificates, the participants presented a skit on how the people of Darfur were affected by the war and how they managed to move on with their lives.
Saiki advised them to be information professionals and not propagandandists, stressing that each professional journalist’s goal and ambition should be to serve the people by providing them with stories that add knowledge and value to their lives. “Have in mind the interest of the people and how they can best be served, how to help them arrive at informed decisions, on the basis of better knowledge,” he said.
The communications director stated that journalists should strive to be moral beacons and role models, and told the participants that their training provided them an opportunity to educate the people and contribute to the return of peace in Darfur, since the vast majority of people rely on the radio for daily information.
Drawing from his several years of public information practice, Saiki cautioned them that journalism is not an easy profession: “you could be intimidated, thrown in jail, even be physically threatened or in danger … but remember that your best protection could ultimately be your professional integrity and the quality of your work.”
(ST)