Training in Natural Disaster and Humanitarian Crisis Reporting for Pakistan 's earthquake affected regions

After the October 8, 2005 earthquake, community radio stations began to open in affected areas in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and North West Frontier Province . These stations – although with limited-term, non-commercial licenses - have played a vital and ongoing role in their communities.

While there seems to be a strong belief among some FM stations that their audiences only want music programming, others believe that providing their communities with information and news is an important aspect of their mandate.

Internews' Jazba-e-Tameer daily program focusing on humanitarian issues is played on most of the emergency stations, and while the core team of 11 Jazba reporters travels extensively throughout the region to report, there has been a concerted effort to find local reporters who could act as Jazba correspondents in their home towns.

This is why training was held in the main hubs where emergency radio stations are operating. Training was held in Balakot and Abbotabad in NWFP and Bagh, Rawalakot and Muzaffarabad in Kashmir . A session was organized for Mirpur but for security reasons was cancelled at the last minute.

As well as outreach to radio stations, a specialist training for young women was held in Abbottabad. Ongoing training for Jazba-e-Tameer reporters was also part of the program. Descriptions of these are outlined below.

Outreach training – emergency radio stations

The typical training was over 4 days, with 2 days put aside for travel to the location (total = 6 days). Two reporters from Jazba-e-Tameer came to each training. (Volunteers were asked for – it was not a compulsory endeavour. In the end every male joined the training roster, but the 3 female reporters attached to the program were unable - for cultural reasons - to take part in the outreach trainings).

The role and participation of the Jazba reporters cannot be understated – they were able to relate to local journalists in a way Internews' international humanitarian advisor could not, addressed local issues in a direct way, and were able to show how well they were doing their jobs. The other excellent aspect of this method of working was that every reporter said that he had learned an enormous amount from the training, had been professional re-invigorated by the process, and felt as if he had contributed something worthwhile to the community.

Training in 43 degree heat, Rawalakot May 2006

The outreach trainings all worked along the same structure, with some differences and variations, depending on the level of experience and sophistication of the class.

Subjects covered were as followed:

Journalism and information as an aid tool.
Pakistani and Kashmiri journalists and their response to disaster, an overview.
The basics of reporting – 1. The fundamentals of a story.
The basics of reporting – 2. Finding an angle, finding the focus.
The basics of reporting – 3. Telling the story on radio.
Journalism – facts vs. opinion
How to report disaster stories relevant, and of interest to, your local community.
Interviewing techniques and Dos and Don'ts
Ethics
Editorial meetings – practical sessions where we discuss story ideas
Basic scripting and structure for radio
Technical session – 1. Using mini disks recording devices & microphone technique
Technical session – 2. Computer editing
Practical sessions – Field work - record, report, script & cut a story for radio.

Jazba reporter Jamal Swati (second from right) oversees trainees, Bagh April 2006
Training was often greatly hampered by lack of resources at the radio stations – limited recording equipment, no or only one computer, no appropriate computer editing programs. On one occasion in Balakot we trained 24 people with two Internews digital minidisk recorders.

To offer a partial remedy to this, trainees who showed strong potential and interest in the field of journalism were invited to work out of the Jazba news room in Abbottabad for one week.

They would join the team, accompany them on stories, as well as developing their own reporting and technical skills. This placement was popular and a great success, creating ongoing links between the Jazba team and the radio stations.

Training of Women Reporters

In April 2006, Internews held a one-week women's training based at the studios in Abbottabad. It was felt that many women would be more comfortable learning in a female-only environment, with female instructors.

In the earthquake affected areas, many issues that affect women need to be discussed and aired, and female reporters are desperately needed to air stories and information that the entire population can value.

However, women are confined in their abilities to do this work, (journalism is a ‘public' profession). As with the female reporters working at Jazba-e-Tameer who would not be seen in their home areas working publicly, the women who attended the Abbottabad training are restricted in their mobility. (Indeed even stopping for lunch in their local areas while we were on field trips during training was not possible).

All the women indicated that they would not be able to pursue journalism/radio reporting in their home areas.

Despite these obvious frustrations, this proved to be one of the most rewarding trainings conducted, despite the difficulties with ‘follow through' with most of the women involved.

The women's training team, Abbottabad, April 2006

The training was excellent in terms of confidence and self esteem building. Several of the younger candidates had not yet started their real careers and have indicated an interest in further training and tertiary study if they can negotiate the cultural issues.

The “curriculum” was based around the same schedule as the outreach training, although, of course, more emphasis was put on women's issues, including the role of women and women journalists in Pakistan and Kashmiri society.

Special mention should be made of Jazba-e-Tameer women reporters, Sumeera Awan, Nighat Hunzai and Saadia Younous, who provided the women with much needed local perspective, relayed their own stories of finding ‘their place', and provided much gentle and appropriate encouragement.

Reporter Saadia Younus working on computer editing

women's training, April 2006.

Working with the Jazba-e-Tameer team

Internews' humanitarian advisor continued working with the Jazba team, running editorial conferences, working closely with new reporters and assisting trainees attached to the program during the times she was in Abbottabad.

This varied from encouraging the nervous to speak in English as much a possible, working on story structure and interviewing techniques, assisting with contacts with English speaking NGOs (often accompanying reporters to meet-and-greets).

source:www.reliefmedia.org.pk