YOUR ROLE IS CRITICAL IN REDUCING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN – ONYIMA TELLS JOURNALISTS
REPORTER: ALFRED AJAYI
A former Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief of the Sun Newspaper, Dr. Tony Onyima, has appealed to journalists to acquire requisite knowledge they need for professional reportage of gender based violence (GBV), especially those targeted at the female gender.
Dr. Onyima, a former Commissioner for Information and Culture in Anambra State, made the appeal during a one-day workshop themed, “Eliminating Gender Based Violence Against Women and Girls,” organized by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Anambra State Council in collaboration with Women Aid Collective (WACOL) and the state Ministry of Women and Children Affairs.
Speaking on the topic “Eradicating violence against women: the role of journalists,” Dr. Onyima described violence against women and girls as a scourge which the media should devote more time and resources to, by training their reporters to understand the issues and report them in the most effective ways.
He listed sexual assault, sexual exploitation, physical assault, domestic violence, forced marriage, as part of acts of violence against the female folk, even as he suggested ways the media could help to reduce the incidents.
“GBV should be treated as human rights violation, Always explain the contexts by putting things into perspective is highly demanded.
“Don’t make excuses for the aggressors but provide information to improve understanding of the problem,” Oyima said.
The former Commissioner for Information also urged journalists to be mindful of their language of reportage, pay attention to the headline and source statistics from reliable sources, while they report reality and avoid sensationalism.
“Gain an understanding in order to help others. You can only help in reporting professionally when you have a detailed knowledge of the incident or problem.
“Avoid secondary victimization. Use testimonies of victims who are now campaigners against GBV.
“Also, stigmatize the victims and be sensitive to cultural differences,” he advised.
In another lecture, a University teacher, Professor Ogugua Ikpeze, described women’s rights as human rights, which could not be taken away from them, even as she appealed to the society to view women as equal with men in terms of their fundamental human rights.
Represented by Dr. Helen Obi, the the University lecturer explained that “gender equality deals with fairness not about rubbing shoulders. By 2030 men and women should be at par politically, economically and otherwise.”
According to the professor, there are several conventions and instruments that protect women and girls from violence, while the Violence Against Persons Prohibition, (VAPP) law 2017 of Anambra State has been of great relief to them.
“Under the VAPP Law, women and girls are protected from physical harm, rape, wife battery, verbal, emotional and psychological abuse as well as female genital mutilation. They are all criminal offences,” the lecturer remarked.
In their separate remarks, the Chairman of NUJ Anambra State Council, Dr. Emeka Odogwu, and the Chairman, International Training and Human Development Committee, Mrs. Uche Kalu, said the training was meant to build the capacity of members for effective reportage of all forms of violence against women and girls and appealed to participants to put the knowledge garnered into practice as well as scale the lessons down to their colleagues in their various offices.
The event attracted members of the NUJ and Mass communication students.
EDITED BY CHUKWUBUIKE MADU
