Objectives

The project aims to create an enabling environment for women human rights defenders and women journalists who use the media to promote and defend the rights of women and girls. More specifically, the project directly reaches over 800 WHRDs, women journalists and journalism students to better report on human rights violations, overcome isolation, increase their visibility and reduce their vulnerability to online and offline threats and harassment. These women will participate in regional seminars and workshops that will give them the opportunity to acquire technical skills in using innovative human rights strategies in media and technology to help improve gender equality.

To achieve effective social change, the project also involves male journalists, media executives, local authorities and other secondary target groups to highlight the vital role of women journalists and women human rights defenders in the development of societies. The project aims to increase recognition in law and practice of the need to protect freedom of expression and to increase the flow of information about women and other marginalized groups. Finally, these initiatives will have a lasting societal impact that will improve the general situation of these groups and their access to basic services.

In addition to the direct involvement of women and secondary target groups, the project will also have an impact on approximately 10,000 other WHRDs and journalists in the target countries as final beneficiaries. Thanks to the skills acquired by the primary targets, these final beneficiaries will have better access to trained resource persons who support their freedom of expression and their capacity to promote the rights of women and girls. The sustainability of the project’s objectives is essential to create significant social, technical and political impacts in each country, as well as to continue to establish an environment that promotes human rights and freedom of expression.

The project aims to create an enabling environment for women human rights defenders and women journalists who use the media to promote and defend the rights of women and girls. More specifically, the project directly reaches over 800 WHRDs, women journalists and journalism students to better report on human rights violations, overcome isolation, increase their visibility and reduce their vulnerability to online and offline threats and harassment. These women will participate in regional seminars and workshops that will give them the opportunity to acquire technical skills in using innovative human rights strategies in media and technology to help improve gender equality.

To achieve effective social change, the project also involves male journalists, media executives, local authorities and other secondary target groups to highlight the vital role of women journalists and women human rights defenders in the development of societies. The project aims to increase recognition in law and practice of the need to protect freedom of expression and to increase the flow of information about women and other marginalized groups. Finally, these initiatives will have a lasting societal impact that will improve the general situation of these groups and their access to basic services.

In addition to the direct involvement of women and secondary target groups, the project will also have an impact on approximately 10,000 other WHRDs and journalists in the target countries as final beneficiaries. Thanks to the skills acquired by the primary targets, these final beneficiaries will have better access to trained resource persons who support their freedom of expression and their capacity to promote the rights of women and girls. The sustainability of the project’s objectives is essential to create significant social, technical and political impacts in each country, as well as to continue to establish an environment that promotes human rights and freedom of expression.

The project includes the following main activities:

Three regional seminars in Amman (2018-2019)

Three regional seminars were organized in Amman to empower women journalists and people with experience in the media sector of all types (including digital media) or in the defence of human rights.

The first seminar (26-30 June 2018), which took the form of round tables and discussions, addressed media strategies to inform and raise awareness of sexual and gender-based violence, thus contributing to more informed coverage of sexual and gender-based violence. The second seminar (13-17 November 2018) examined digital security and the risks posed by digital media to women. A final seminar (22-25 April 2019) looked at media literacy, as well as best practices in social networking and mobile journalism. About 20 participants attended each of these training sessions.

National workshops

The main themes of the regional seminars were taken up by means of three workshops organized in the targeted countries, namely Iraq, Palestine, Sudan and Yemen. Each of the workshops was attended by about 20 participants, the majority of whom were women.

Media Literacy Training Workshops

A priority focus of the project is media education, journalistic information production and digital communication to strengthen citizen capacity to protect the rights of women and girls. Thus, during the summer of 2019, media literacy workshops were organized in Iraq, Palestine and Sudan. Some 15 participants took part in each country.

Activities for Journalism Students

The project also targets journalism students through digital safety training workshops and the creation of journalism clubs.

At this stage of the project, workshops have been held in Khartoum, Sudan, and in the West Bank, each reaching approximately 15 people. These two trainings led to the creation of a journalism club in Sudan and three clubs in Palestine, two in the West Bank (Arab American University, Palestinian Technical University) and a third one bringing together students from different journalism schools in the Gaza Strip. During the last phase of the project, these clubs will undertake information and education campaigns, including the dissemination of newsletters on issues related to the rights of women and girls.

The formation of a regional network of women journalists

As part of the project, a network was created to strengthen the collective action of women journalists and other citizen journalists around human rights issues. This network also aims to strengthen dialogue and promote the sharing of journalistic practices and strategies in order to amplify women’s voices. In particular, the network organized a regional conference on 17 and 18 November 2018, in collaboration with the Jordanian organization Arab Women Media Centre (AWMC).

Participation in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism

A series of consultations and training workshops were organized in Amman and in each partner country to engage civil society in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process and thus highlight violations against women journalists and women professionals and citizens working in the media sector. These activities have strengthened civil society’s capacity to document and report, as well as to follow up on UPR recommendations.