From SOUL BEAT AFRICA - where communication and media are central to AFRICA's social and economic development.

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This issue of The Soul Beat focuses on programme experiences, strategic thinking documents, materials and training opportunities related to human rights. Although there are many different kinds of human rights, in this edition we have chosen to include a selection of summaries from the Soul Beat Africa website that are related to the rights of women and girls, children, migrants, and the right to access to information.

If you would like your organisation's communication work or research and resource documents to be featured on the Soul Beat Africa website and in the Soul Beat newsletters please contact the Editor - Anja Venth aventh@comminit.com [4]

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WOMEN & GIRLS' RIGHTS

1. The State of the World's Children 2007: Women and Children [5]
This UNICEF publication examines the discrimination and disempowerment women face throughout their lives - and outlines what must be done to eliminate gender discrimination and empower women and girls. It looks at the status of women today, discusses how gender equality can move all the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) forward, and shows how investment in women's rights has the potential to produce a double dividend: advancing the rights of both women and children.

2. Zero Tolerance for FGM - Mali [6]
Launched in 2006, this project uses television and radio spots, as well as personal communication to promote the abandonment of female genital mutilation (FGM) in Mali. According to the organiser, Population Services/Mali, the campaign aims to confront the fact that over 90% of Malian woman are excised and no law exists prohibiting the practice. One strategy of the project is to encourage public discussion and provide an opportunity for the voices of those affected to be heard. The programme held a ceremony on the abandonment of FGM on the International Day against FGM on February 6 2007. The ceremony included a presentation made by a 13-year old victim of FGM, who, through a poem, asked her mother why she had excised her and then asked the Ministry officials how could they tolerate such a practice.
Contact Steve Lutterbeck psimali@psimali.org [7]

3. Uganda Media Women's Association (UMWA) - Uganda [8]
Formed in 1983, UMWA is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) for female journalists that aims to raise the status of Ugandan women, especially those in rural communities, so that they can freely participate in development programmes that are designed to not only benefit them but the country at large. UMWA is also working to give the underprivileged and unheard a publicity channel that will mobilise policymakers to legislate positively for them in the fields of human rights, land ownership, domestic violence, children's rights, and health issues. UMWA seeks to promote rights and freedoms of marginalised groups in Ugandan society, in particular, through capacity building as well as sharing and disseminating information for sustainable development.
Contact Uganda Media Women's Association umwa@africaonline.co.ug [9] OR umwa@umwamamafm.co.ug [10]

4. Foundation for Female Photojournalists (FFP) - Ghana [11]
This non-profit media and art advocacy and research organisation uses information communication technology (ICT) and other forms of media for development to advance the skills and prominence of women photojournalists so that they might effectively advocate for the rights and development of minority groups, especially women and children. FFP aims to carry this out by documenting and increasing society's awareness of the achievements and challenges of women and children through photography and video, by building the capacity of visual communicators and the media to respond to women and children's rights issues, and by creating and providing useable and accessible information for the development of women and children.
Contact FFP ffpnet@yahoo.com [12]

5. AWID International Forum on Women's Rights and Development (Nov 14-17 2008) - Cape Town, South Africa [13]
Hosted by the Association for Women's Rights in Development (AWID), this Forum is held every three years to bring together women's rights leaders and activists from around the world to strategise, network, celebrate, and learn in what the organisers say is an atmosphere that fosters deep discussions and sustained personal and professional growth.

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Join a discussion on human rights and AIDS in Africa

The AIDS and Rights Alliance for Southern Africa (ARASA) has set up a new email list to discuss issues around human rights and AIDS in Africa. The list is meant to be a forum for Africans and others interested in the region to discuss key issues, share information about human rights abuses in their countries and share expertise. If you would like to join this list you can send an email to: aidsrights-subscribe@yahoogroups.com [14] with a short description of who you are and why you are asking to join the list (the list is moderated and ARASA staff will be approving all list memberships). For more information, contact Gregg Gonsalves gregg.gonsalves@gmail.com [15]

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CHILDREN'S RIGHTS

6. 50% Campaign for Tanzanian Youth - Tanzania [16]
Created in response to the fact that almost 50% of Tanzania's population is now under 18, 50% is an advocacy and legal reform campaign for child rights in Tanzania. The campaign objectives include: promoting juvenile justice services which uphold the best interests of Tanzania's children; ensuring legal reform such that Tanzania adheres to international standards of child rights and protection; facilitating public awareness of appropriate treatment of children and alternatives to abuse; and promoting collaboration between civil society, business and local government in the pursuit of child rights and welfare.
Contact Tanja Kisslinger tanja@mkombozi.org [17] OR 50@mkombozi.org [18]

7. Zambia's Commitment to Children's Rights [19]
This study focuses on six sectors - education, health, child affairs, social welfare, juvenile justice and recreation - and aims to provide information that will help government officials, policy-makers and civil society create better-informed programmes aimed at realising child rights. According to the writer, Zambia is facing an unprecedented crisis; job losses, severe food shortages and declining productivity have hit its citizens hard, especially children. Rising HIV/AIDS rates have caused the number of homeless children to double in five years, the number of orphans to reach close to 100 000 and about 850 000 children to be forced into child labour.

8. Supporting Children's Rights through Education, the Arts and the Media (SCREAM) - Africa [20]
This project is an educational social mobilisation initiative which aims to fight child labour around the world. The project is working in Egypt where it is implemented by the International Labour Organization's (ILO) International Programme for the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) Sub-regional Office for North Africa and the Italian Embassy in Cairo. Through creative teaching methods, SCREAM aims to sensitise young people to child labour, so they can speak out on behalf of child labourers. For this purpose they have developed an education pack that aims to assist young people with activities to help generate understanding and awareness of child labour in their communities.
Contact ILO ipec@ilo.org

9. Mid-Term Evaluation of Search for Common Ground (Centre Lokolé) "Supporting Congo's Transition Towards Sustainable Peace" Programme in Democratic Republic of Congo [21]
by Mary Myers and Judy El-Bushra
This report documents a mid-term review to assess Search for Common Ground (SFCG)'s "Supporting Congo's Transition towards Sustainable Peace" programme, funded by the Department for International Development (DFID). According to the report, the programme has promoted conflict transformation communication through its radio outputs, as well as through participatory theatre. "Sisi Watoto" is a magazine programme on children's rights prepared and produced by children. There is some evidence that the programme's outputs have helped reduce general levels of tension, as well as contributing to specific instances where violence has been prevented, including most notably child demobilisation resulting from "Sisi Watoto."

10. Human Rights Leadership Development & Training (June 01-July 18 2008) - Online [22]
The programme, run by the Human Rights and Justice Group, is designed to equip participants with skills to better understand the concepts of human rights learning and leadership development. This course intends to further provide participants with a concrete “step-by-step” approach including hints and guidelines for developing and implementing a successful human rights project in their organisation and communities.

RIGHTS OF PEOPLE ON THE MOVE

11. Who Asked Them Anyway? Rights, Policies and Wellbeing of Refugees in Egypt [23]
by Katarzyna Grabska
This 60-page research paper explores policies and rights related to refugees in Egypt. It was developed as part of the Development Research Centre on Migration, Poverty and Globalization, funded by the Department for International Development (DfID) and carried out by the Forced Migration and Refugee Studies programme (FMRS) at the American University in Cairo between February and June 2005. The researchers looked at the domestic policy environment as shaped by national and international political, social, and economic forces. The research considered the actors, forces, and conditions which determine policy in all its stages from how it is devised, to how it is applied, including how policy may be subverted or rendered ineffectual. The research found that for "bottom-up" and rights-based approaches to succeed, there has to be a clearer understanding of who is responsible for upholding and protecting refugee rights. In terms of communication, this is generally about lack of awareness and good information about these rights.

12. Khuluma Afrika (Speak Africa) - South Africa [24]
This project involved a community theatre production aimed at raising awareness about human trafficking and migration among the Mozambican community in South Africa. Created by CMFD (Community Media for Development) Productions for the International Organisation for Migration's (IOM) Southern African Counter-Trafficking Assistance Program (SACTAP), Khuluma Afrika! combined drama, dance, music, discussion and the distribution of information materials. The story aimed to raise awareness about counter trafficking, make people aware of the IOM hotline number, and aimed to encourage people and whistleblowers to report trafficking and seek help. Performed in Portuguese, with some dialogue in Shangaan, English, and isiZulu, the main drama was accompanied by comedy skits that talk about life in the mines, being far from home and migration. Although the production focused on trafficking and migration, it incorporated a variety of related issues such as women's rights, gender and migration and HIV/AIDS.
Contact Deborah Walter deb@cmfd.org [25]

13. Track Two: Refugees, Conflict & Conflict Resolution [26]
Published from 1992 to 2005, Track Two was a quarterly publication of the Centre for Conflict Resolution (CCR) that was designed to promote innovative and constructive approaches to community and political conflict, as an alternative to traditional adversarial tactics. The issue being summarised here (Vol. 9 No. 3) focuses on the problems and conflicts associated with refugee communities. It contains 9 articles that discuss challenges that the protection of refugees presents to states and other actors across Africa. In addition to the imperative of addressing the conflicts that give rise to refugees in the first instance, the publishers emphasise the urgent need to manage the many problems associated with asylum.

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AWARDS, PRIZES OR COMPETITIONS

Do you know of any awards, prizes or competitions that seek to recognise communicators or media in Africa working on issues such as human rights, health, the environment and other social issues?
If so, please send your information to the editor Anja Venth aventh@comminit.com [4] for inclusion on the Soul Beat Africa website.

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THE RIGHT TO INFORMATION

14. Access to Information: The Key to an Open Society
by Open Society Initiative Southern Africa (OSISA) [27]
"The public’s right to access information, both state held and from the private sector, is an essential component in an open society that is committed to democratic processes, accountable leadership, transparency in its conduct and the rule of law." In Southern Africa, most countries have not legislated for the protection of the right to access information. Yet there are encouraging developments, with South Africa's progressive Promotion of Access to Information Act adopted in 2000, Malawi's Access to Information Act and Mozambique's 2005 Draft Law on Access to Official Sources of Information. This paper highlights the salient points of these three pieces of legislation and provides an analysis of their strengths and shortcomings, as compared to best international practice.

15. African Rural Press in Action (ARUPA) - Tanzania [28]
Working with rural media and communities in Tanzania, the organisation aims to put rural issues such as HIV/AIDS, child labour, the environment and poverty on the media's agenda. It also provides support to rural media practitioners through workshops and offers platforms for the exchange of news and views between rural and urban populations. ARUPA's objectives are to: create awareness of fundamental human rights and the right to access to information through mass media such as radio, television, magazines; identify and advocate for human rights in relation to HIV/AIDS, child labour, the environment and poverty; and conduct short and long term training programmes for rural people and rural communicators. ARUPA has a project called, Information, Education and Communication Programme (IECP) that aims to promote and sensitise the community to fight harmful traditional practices affecting children, woman and youths and advocate for human rights.
Contact arupadan@hotmail.com [29]

16. The Windhoek Seminar: “Ten years on: Assessment, Challenges and Prospects” [30]
by Celestin Lingo and Suzanne Kala Lobe
The Windhoek Declaration adopted in Namibia on 3 May 1991 falls in line with the principle of the Universal Declaration of Human rights which acknowledges that information is a fundamental right, public property at the service of humanity. For this right to be enjoyed fully, the Windhoek Declaration asserts the need for an independent press and encourages African States to “provide the constitutional guarantees necessary for press freedom” and for the emergence of a pluralistic press in the continent. In particular, the Windhoek Declaration recommends the elimination of all economic and legal obstacles to the establishment of new media outlets. It urges UNESCO and the international community to support the implementation of the principles outlined to ensure the harmonious development of the African press.

16. Radio Voice of the People (VOP) - Zimbabwe [31]
VOP seeks to promote a free and democratic society that will empower Zimbabweans by encouraging dialogue, tolerance, and the sharing of ideas by people from diverse backgrounds. VOP journalists work to present issue-driven (rather than event-driven) news and programmes and to provide clear, complete, and detailed information. They are encouraged to establish networks with both government and civil society organisations in order to seek balanced viewpoints. Specifically, VOP broadcasts a variety of news stories and editorial comments sourced from both the government and privately-owned media, airing weekly debates on topical issues of the time, such as Senate elections, succession issues, attempts to unite major political parties, and the deterioration of the economy and how to revive it. Some of its programmes focus on human rights abuses, health education and HIV/AIDS.
Contact John Masuku voxpop@ecoweb.co.zw [32]

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To view other issues of The Soul Beat newsletter related to human rights, see:

The Soul Beat 93 - Gender and Gender-based violence [33]

The Soul Beat 87 - Communication for Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons [34]

The Soul Beat 75 - Action for Orphans and Vulnerable Children [35]

The Soul Beat 49 - Journalism: Rights & Peace [36]

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Subscribe to The Soul Beat Extra - your e-journal focused in each alternate month on Community Radio or Edutainment. If you would like to receive the Soul Beat Extra on Community Radio or Edutainment please contact Seipati Fountain sfountain@comminit.com [37]

We would love to hear from you: Please send us your Comments [38] or email Anja Venth aventh@comminit.com [39]

Click here [40] for more comments on the Soul Beat Africa website.

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The Soul Beat seeks to cover the full range of communication for development activities. Inclusion of an item does not imply endorsement or support by The Partners.

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