USAID/Guinea: Journalists Receive Training on Media Coverage of Military

MAY 30, 2007

Journalists Receive Training
on Media Coverage of Military

A four-day workshop gives 30 Guinean journalists new tools to improve their coverage of Guinean security forces.

CONAKRY - Working journalists seeking to improve their understanding and coverage of the Guinean military recently participated in training session organized by the international non-governmental organization IFES and funded by USAID/Guinea.

Though planned much earlier, the training came at an opportune moment for the journalists, who faced great difficulty reporting the news during a general strike and public demonstrations which resulted in the deaths of more than 100 people nationwide in January and February.

The four-day session was intended to improve the ability of journalists to cover security and defense issues while improving the relationship between the media and the security forces, according to Elizabeth Cote, director of the IFES program in Guinea.

Six women were among the 30 journalists trained on media-military relations.

Two facilitators -- Olivier Rogez, a reporter who covers Africa for Radio France International, and Colonel Cécé Balamou, director of Guinee's gendarmerie (or police force) - led the discussions among the 30 participants, which included six women. The journalists represented 13 private newspapers, 16 radio stations (four rural, five community, three public and four private stations) and one website.

Session themes included: covering a conflict, collection and treatment of information during conflict, concepts of defense and security, treatment of information by security forces and responsibilities of journalists.

"It's very important to talk about the way of covering a crisis," said Rogez, citing the many difficulties journalists encountered in recent weeks. "We all understand that the situation for journalists is very difficult in Guinea now."

In fact, several journalists were arrested by the military during the demonstrations, a practice that needs to stop, he said, adding: "The military now has to learn the rights and needs of the journalists."

In fact, both the journalists and Col. Balamou lamented the fact that there are no communication mechanisms between the security forces and the media; one of the main recommendations is to fill this void.

Olivier Rogez, reporter for Radio France International, makes a point at the seminar as LeAnna Marr, Technical Office Team Leader for USAID/Guinea, looks on.

Among other recommendations emerging from the workshop: strengthening of media associations, civic education for rank-and-file military, improved security and protection for journalists, and extension of the training to the heads of publications and radios. The group also agreed to expand their networking and share their experiences with other journalists, nationally and internationally.

The training session was organized in partnership with Guinean's civilian/military committee, formation of which was sponsored last year by USAID/Guinea in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy.

Story and photos by Richard Stirba