Lesotho: World Press Freedom Day Commemoration (3 May 2010, Thabeng football ground, Lesotho)
Organizers: UNESCO Windhoek Office, MISA Lesotho. UNESCO National Commission for Lesotho, the Transformation Resource Centre (TRC), Women and Law in Southern Africa (WILSA), Lesotho Council of NGOs and Morija Community Council.
MISA Lesotho will organize a debate on this year’s theme to sensitize journalists, media practitioners, media activists, members of local organizations and local authorities on the importance of freedom of information as an integral part of freedom of expression and its contribution to democratic governance. It will foster reflection and exchange of ideas on freedom of information to advance empowerment, transparency, accountability and the fight against corruption, as well as on the key obstacles that the effective exercise of the right to know faces in today’s digitalized world.
This year’s celebrations will take place once again in rural Lesotho in the village Morija, in order to sensitize rural citizens on their fundamental right of freedom of expression, which encompasses the freedom “to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. The commemorations will start with a march from Morija village to the Thabeng football ground in order to raise awareness on this year’s theme. After the march, a debate will take place addressing issues related to freedom of information.
Contact Information:
Thabang Matjama
Information and Research Officer
MISA Lesotho
Tel: +266 22 320941
Swaziland: Media Ethics Seminar and World Press Freedom Commemorations (3-12 May 2010,Matsapha, Swaziland)
Organizers: UNESCO Windhoek Office, MISA Swaziland, Swaziland National Commission for UNESCO
This commemoration will be in the form of a ten day Media Ethics Seminar, based on a localization of the course on Media Ethics in the UNESCO Model Curricula for Journalism Education. The model course has been adapted to the context of Swaziland.
The Draft Journalism Ethics course will be introduced by Professor Edward Moyo, who developed the outline, as a means of launching the seminar. The course critically examines the key ethical matters related to, but not confined to, issues of truth-telling. It focuses on areas such as journalistic autonomy, which may be faced with conflict of interests, evidence, fact checking and collaboration. These topics will be discussed in light of apologies presented by reporters in local media as well as retractions made in connection with un-substantiated information, sources (named and anonymous) to be closely examined in light of ethical issues involved in conflicts created by anonymous sources; to mention but a few.
Contact information:
Mr. Jaco du Toit
Communication and Information Advisor
UNESCO Windhoek Office
Tel: +264 61 291 7217
Namibia: Launch of the Gender Toolkit and Commemoration of World Press Freedom Day (7 May 2010, Hotel Thule, Windhoek)
Organizers: UNESCO, UNIC, MISA Namibia and the Polytechnic of Namibia
The theme for this year’s World Press Freedom Day is, “Freedom of Information The Right to Know”, and will be celebrated in cooperation with the United Nations System, MISA Namibia, The Polytechnic of Namibia and Genderlinks. The celebrations will take place at Hotel Thule on 7 May 2010, and will start at 3pm with an opening address by Ms Kari Egge, the Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in Namibia.
The celebrations will focus on the Namibian context in relation to access to information and the right to know, and will highlight the topic of women and access to information. The event will also be an opportunity to launch the “Gender Toolkit for Educators, Gender and Media Progress Study: The case of Namibia” and the MISA publication “So this is Democracy”.
>> See agenda
Contact information:
Mr. Jaco du Toit, UNESCO Windhoek Office (Tel: 291 7000)
Ms Athea Basson, UNIC (Tel: 204 6408)
Mr Ngamane Karuaihe, Upi (Tel: 236 096)
