07 Jul 2014 Consolidating and Promoting a Culture of Peace

Republic of the Congo

In the context of electoral tensions in the Republic of Congo in 2012, the Organization for Development and Human Rights in the Congo (ODDHC) carried out a training workshop for media professionals on the values of tolerance, promotion of peace and conflict resolution, and respect for human rights. Six women and 16 men took part in the workshop and 20 programmes and articles were produced. Follow-up work included accompaniment of participants in the production and diffusion of broadcast programmes and articles related to these themes. The workshop enabled the journalists to be self-critical of the behaviour of journalists during a period of national elections. They recognized gaps in training methodologies and shared their experiences with the teaching staff of faculties of communication studies. The most important changes brought about by the project were that journalists learned the basic notions of communication for peace and ODDHC was able to form a strong partnership with civil society organizations working with the media. Direct beneficiaries included 22 trainees. Indirect beneficiaries were the local population in which the journalists were working.

Assessment: The expected outcomes of the project were achieved. As a result ODDHC was able to strengthen its partnership with civil society organisations working with the mass media and specifically with the Congolese Media Observatory and the Journalists’ Group for Peace. In collaboration with these partners, ODDHC intends to continue to promote the production of programmes and articles focused on peace, tolerance, and respect for human rights.

Final Report