OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek enhances young journalists’ skills in covering security and human-rights issues

The OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek supported a four-day training workshop aimed at enhancing young journalists’ skills in covering security and human rights-related topics, which concluded on 22 October 2017 in the village of Kosh-Kol in the Issyk-Kul province of Kyrgyzstan.   

Some 23 young journalists had the opportunity to enhance their professional skills in providing objective and impartial coverage of issues related to security and human rights protection mechanisms. They were also familiarized with the media sensitivity of reporting on human rights violations, with a focus on prevention of torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment.

The training course was designed by two prominent experts in human rights and media reporting: Bogna Chmielewska, Project Co-ordinator at the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, and Azamat Tynaev, Head of the Practical Journalism Studio in Kyrgyzstan. “People still remain unaware of their human rights. Journalists act as agents of knowledge, educating people and broadening their mind. However, if a journalist is not aware of the basics of human rights and the ways to defend them, distorted information can be disseminated, creating wrong narratives”, said Chmielewska.

The Programme Office supports a variety of training courses for young reporters and students on international standards in reporting on violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism, as well as security and human rights issues. The event was conducted within the framework of the OSCE projects “Empowering Youth as Agents of Change in Promoting Inter-communal Relations and Conflict Prevention” and “Promoting a Comprehensive Approach to the Rule of Law, Administration of Justice, Prevention of Torture and Penitentiary Reform”.