UNODC is cosponsor of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS - UNAIDS
Report on the Media Sensitization Workshop Held in Sri Lanka on 25th March 2008 for Understanding and Addressing Human Trafficking
Contributed by Nandita Baruah, GIFT Coordinator
Mr. Faizal Samath, Chief Editor, Sunday Financial Express, Mr. Cheevan Daniel, Channel Head, MTV, Ms. Sriyani Tidball, CEO, Community Concern Society and Mr. Gary Lewis, Representative, UNODC ROSA at the inaugural session of the Media Sensitization Workshop
A one day media sensitization workshop was held on the 25 March 08 in Colombo as part of the
GIFT South Asia initiative. The objective of the workshop was to get the media to understand the issue of human trafficking in all its complexities and discuss the role media can play in bringing about greater awareness on the issue. The inaugural session of the workshop was addressed by Mr. Cheevan Daniel, Channel Head MTV, Mr. Faizal Samath, Chief Editor Sunday Financial Express and Mr. Gary Lewis Representative, UNODC ROSA. The workshop was attended by about 30 representatives from the print and television media. The workshop brought to light the fact that human trafficking was not a very well understood issue. While the journalist agreed that it was important to highlight the issue, they felt that paucity of information and knowledge on the subject acted as a major impediment. Also given the situation of conflict in Sri Lanka other issues tended to be less news worthy from the media perspective. It was also agreed that a lot of human trafficking cases may be going un-documented, under the guise of 'unsafe migration'.
Mr. Cheevan Daniel, Channel Head, MTV
Mr. Cheevan Daniel, Channel Head, MTV, during the inaugural address said that there is a need for media to play a more proactive role. He also mentioned that while reporting on the issue one needs to go to the root of the problem and identify the social and economic causes that are making people vulnerable to being trafficked.
Mr. Faizal Samath, Chief Editor, Sunday Financial Express
Mr. Faizal Samath, Chief Editor, Sunday Financial Express, in his address stated that it was important for the media to understand how to report on the issue so that it gets proper coverage. He said that while in Sri Lanka, 60-70% of the news is about the conflict, one has to see how issues like human trafficking can get the necessary media attention and focus. He stated that social and ethical issues have to be kept in mind while reporting on human trafficking, for example the link between trafficking and children in domestic work, or that of child soldiers would also need to be addressed.
Gary Lewis, Representative, UNODC ROSA
Mr. Gary Lewis, Representative, UNODC ROSA, in his inaugural address informed that human trafficking is one of the most appalling forms of human rights violation. He shared with the participants the broader understanding of human trafficking as defined in the UN Convention on Transnational Organized Crime. Mr. Lewis also shared about the different intervention being undertaken by UNODC to combat human trafficking. "As a part of the UN.GIFT initiative, UNODC ROSA is working to mark a turning point in the fight against human trafficking by developing partnerships with the media, entertainment industry and the private sector" said Mr. Lewis.
He emphasized the critical role media can play to mobilize communities and shape public opinion regarding the issue.
The inaugural session was followed by the interactive workshop which was facilitated by Mr. Prasan Syangden, General Secretary,
Rights of Individuals for Social Empowerment (RISE) and member of the Media Coalition in Nepal. He was joined by Mr. Gary Lewis and Ms. Nandita Baruah from UNODC ROSA.
Mr. Gary Lewis, conducting a workshop session for the media representatives
The workshop session focused on understanding the issue of human trafficking from the Sri Lankan context. It elicited the opinions from the participating journalist on what they saw as the key concerns that need to be addressed by the media to ensure more informed and consistent reporting on the problem of human trafficking. The groups agreed that while human trafficking was not very well understood in Sri Lanka, but at the same time they were not sure of the extent of the problem. There was a strong feel that more investigative research needs to be done to get a better understanding of the extent and nature of the problem. This they felt will enable them to highlight the problem in its correct perspective.
Mr. Faizal Samath, Chief Editor, Sunday Financial Express, Mr. Cheevan Daniel, Channel Head, MTV, Ms. Sriyani Tidball, CEO, Community Concern Society and Mr. Gary Lewis, Representative, UNODC ROSA at the inaugural session of the Media Sensitization Workshop
Mr. Cheevan Daniel, Channel Head, MTV
Mr. Faizal Samath, Chief Editor, Sunday Financial Express
Gary Lewis, Representative, UNODC ROSA
Mr. Gary Lewis, conducting a workshop session for the media representatives