Initiatives of Change - Disarming pens and microphones

In a country experiencing difficulties dragging itself out of a long and violent crisis fuelled by political powers, in which the media have often poisoned the situation even further, can we hope to see the start of a 'journalism of reconciliation and peace?' An initial response to this question has just been given during a week of peace training aimed at journalists from Côte d'Ivoire. Although the media alone cannot end the tragedy, nonetheless, without socially responsible media, there will be no end to the crisis.

From 1 to 7 March, 25 political journalists, chosen from the country’s press and audiovisual media, followed a course led by Initiatives of Change International and the Infosud press agency. The workshop was entitled 'Media synergy for fair and hate-free elections'. This is the fifth training session that the two partners have organised together. Previously trainings have taken place in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo and twice at the IofC centre in Caux, Switzerland, for the journalists from the African Great Lakes region. In total, 125 journalists have taken part in these five seminars.

The crisis declared in 2000 spans the whole of Côte d'Ivoire and is the worst the country has seen for several decades. From the outset, the political deterioration paved the way for public life to become increasingly brutalised, leading to resentment and antagonism. French armed forces intervened to ensure implementation of a ceasefire between government forces and rebel factions in the north, but this was not always welcomed. Three fruitless attempts to contain the crisis were made – initially in France and then in Ghana. A fourth brought about an agreement at Ouagadougou exactly a year ago, but it still remains to be seen if it will succeed.

Assana Sangaré, President of IofC Côte d'Ivoire, interviewed on téléjournal national television in Ivory Coast. (Photo: Danielle Maillefer)

It is this situation, which has improved slightly but nonetheless remains precarious, which mobilised the parliamentarian and former minister, and president of Initiatives of Change- Côte d’Ivoire (ICCI), Mrs Assana Sangaré, to request that a training session be held for journalists. The initiative is all the more welcome now that Ivorians are aspiring to peace and elections are due to be organised in the coming months in the hope of moving out of the crisis and establishing a stable government majority for the future.

But many questions remain to be answered – by journalists in particular: Is it enough simply for journalists to provide information or do they have a social responsibility? How far can they participate in the reconciliation effort? Can peace be be 'sold', instead of just war? How can fair and hate-free elections be made easier? How can pens and microphones be disarmed in a crisis? How can you avoid falling into journalistic espionage? How can you avoid categorizing or demonizing your adversary and using emotive language? Such questions are particularly pertinent when, for example, splashed across the front page of an Ivorian newspaper in reference to the president and Prime Minister, are the words: 'Gbagbo wants to kill Soro. Soro wants to kill Gbagbo'.

Honest conversations

Participants au séminaire de journalistes en Côte d'Ivoire (2)

Participants at the seminar for journalists in Ivory Coast. (Photo: Danielle Maillefer)

These issues were tackled with absolute honesty in the workshop at the beginning of March. Aware of the need to avoid preaching, the session leaders wanted first of all to understand what the Ivorian journalists present felt, themselves, about the troubles their country is suffering, their hopes for the future and what contribution each of them could make towards the peace effort. The participants were asked on several occasions to write essays on various topics. They experienced a certain amount of difficulty, at the beginning at least, in imagining different scenarios about the coming elections: if a certain candidate won, how would the losers react? Is there a risk of violence? And many other considerations. The journalists put up a certain amount of resistance to this exercise and showed defiance towards the leaders, who were suddenly seen as, perhaps… spies! As if journalists were not allowed to do any pre-emptive work, which politicians themselves are so used to doing.

The leaders asked the participants to tell them honestly

A short break, Thomas Ntambu in discussion with a participant. (Photo: Danielle Maillefer)

what lessons they had taken from their time there, as it could also be useful for organising future training sessions. The responses they received showed that interactive and democratic teaching, in which it was possible to have different opinions on one issue, was quite welcome. It also allowed them to gauge how far the participants grasped the importance of achieving coherence between personal integrity and professional responsibility.
'I learned, writes one radio reporter, 'that the press is never an innocent party in the many crises bloodying our continent. That means that journalists have a major role to play in peace building.'. Other comments included:

The trainers helped us to learn from one another, primarily through listening, silence and productive exchanges based on experiences.'

'I am convinced that the human values I have learned, such as listening to others, forgiveness, and undoing hatred, have helped me to keep quiet or to rid myself of the hatred that was eating away at me so that I can carry out my job with professionalism.'

'Over the course of this seminar I have learned to listen to my inner voice and to take step back before acting or even before I take up my pen or microphone.'

These assessments bring out a feature that is specific to the seminars run by the IofC-Infosud partnership: the traditional scope of training has been expanded so that it was quite natural to introduce more personal ideas, like really listening to others, silent reflection, the refusal to judge others, behavioural changes, healing moral wounds, and forgiveness – all of which are vital features in establishing peace.

The journalists create a consultation network

Now starts the second phase of the initiative. Between now and June the participants are expected to produce around fifty newspaper articles and radio and television programmes, dealing with the actual elections in accordance with the peace and reconciliation journalism methods. The journalists have also been asked to talk to their editors so as to make them aware of and interest them in the process now underway.

Ministre de la réconciliation, Côte d'Ivoire

The delegation was received by the Minister of National Reconciliation and Relations with the Institutions M. Sebastien Dano Djédjé. On his right: Danielle Maillefer, far right: Fabrice Boulé

For their part, the journalists themselves have also launched an interesting initiative. In an article published on 11 March in the daily newspaper Fraternité Matin, Frank Zagbayou, one of the participants, describes it as follows: The 25 Ivorian political journalists came from both public and private media with a range of political leanings and training backgrounds and at the end of the week set up a network to collaborate, consult, keep watch, give warning and raise awareness with their colleagues. But also with all of the players in the electoral process to bring about hate-free, successful elections.' For them, then, it is a question of following through with the work undertaken together in preparation for the elections and to extend the line of thought to other media professionals.

The trainers on the course were Danielle Maillefer, a communications expert from Initiatives of Change International, Fabrice Boulé, journalist and programme leader for 'Peace and Reconciliation Journalism' at InfoSud, and Thomas Ntambu, mediator and ethics trainer at IofC international. The session was funded by subsidies granted by the Swiss development and cooperation office (SDC) and by the institute for international relations of the German foreign ministry (ifa-zivik).

Grand Bassam, March 7, 2008, the closing day of the seminar. The German Ambassador Rolf M. Ulrich and the Ambassador of Switzerland M. Dominik Langenbacher, representing countries that fund the program, present certificates to the participants. (Photo: Danielle Maillefer)

The leaders and participants expressed their gratitude to the German and Swiss ambassadors who honoured the closing ceremony with their presence for the active support of their respective countries. The diplomats promised that the journalists would be judged on their deeds.

by Jean-Jacques Odier, translated by Claire Ferguson
Taken from the papers and notes of the participants.