MINELRES: Invitation to the "Media and Fighting Discrimination against Roma and Sinti: Media as a tool against anti-Gypsyism" event

MINELRES moderator [email protected]
Tue Aug 31 17:55:02 2004


Original sender: Valeriu Nicolae <[email protected]>


European Roma Information Office together with OSCE are glad to invite
you to the �Media and Fighting Discrimination against Roma and Sinti:
Media as a tool against anti-Gypsyism� side event within the OSCE
Conference on Tolerance and the Fight against Racism, Xenophobia and
Discrimination from 13-14th of September in Brussels.
 
Up to this point there are very few and weak coalitions between Roma
NGOs, non-Roma civic society's organisations and media. That needs to
change in order to achieve the much needed social cohesion of Europe.

Please see the invitation and agenda of the side event.

European Roma Information Office
Avenue Edouard Lacomble 17 , Brussels 1040
Tel : 0032 (0) 2733 34 62
Mobile :0032 (0) 476538194
www.erionet.org 
 

20 August 2004

Dear  Colleague:

On 13-14 September, 2004 in Brussels the OSCE will hold a Conference on
Tolerance and the Fight against Racism, Xenophobia and Discrimination.
For information about this event and how to register, see
http://www..osce.org/events/conferences/tolerance2004/ .

As part of this conference, on the 13th of September from 16.45 to
18.30, the OSCE ODIHR will hold a side event, with the co-operation of
the Belgian foreign ministry, entitled �Media and Fighting
Discrimination against Roma and Sinti: Media as a tool against
anti-Gypsyism�. 

A provisional agenda of this event is below.

We welcome you to join the discussion. Again, one needs only to visit
the Internet link above to find details on how to register. Refreshments
will be served. We regret that we are not able to offer financial
assistance for costs of travel or accommodation.

If you are unable to attend the event but would like to offer a written
presentation/report for distribution, please send such documents to Mr.
Jud Nirenberg at [email protected], telephone (48) 22 520 0600.

Thank you for your attention.

Sincerely,

Nicolae Gheorghe                                 
ODIHR Advisor for Roma and Sinti Issues   

Jo-Anne Bishop
ODIHR Advisor, Tolerance and anti-Discrimination Programme
  

Media and Fighting Discrimination against Roma and Sinti:

Media as a tool against anti-Gypsyism
September 13, 16.45 to 18.15

Since the spring of 2004, the ODIHR has been engaging in a mapping
exercise of OSCE participating States� initiatives and practices as well
as legislation to combat discrimination and to promote tolerance.
Practices included in this information-gathering include efforts to curb
hate speech and to promote diversity in media. Simultaneously, the ODIHR
is developing a �database� of good practice in using media as a tool for
combating anti-Gypsyism. 

This side event will allow for experts and practitioners from media and
NGOs as well as representatives of OSCE participating States to discuss
existing models of working with Romani and mainstream media to fight
stereotypes and promote integration as well as multiculturalism. Short
presentations will be following by open discussion among participants.

Moderator: Valeriu Nicolae, ERIO

16.45 Themes and aims of the session. 
N. Gheorghe, Advisor for Roma and Sinti Issues, OSCE ODIHR

16.55 welcome and comments from Belgian delegation

17.00 Media and the Combat of anti-Gypsy Bias in Belgium. 
Wolf Bruggen, Flemish Minority Center (Belgium)

17.20 Anti-Gypsyism, or anti-Tsiganism: An European Cultural Codex. 
Rudko Kawczynski, Roma and Sinti Union, Hamburg (Germany)

17.40 Data-basing good practices of media in promoting multi-cultural
and fighting discrimination: a presentation of undergoing
ODIHR-sponsored work
Nicolae Gheorghe

18.00 How to use media communication tools for tolerance and
anti?discrimination promotion.
Ciprian Necula, Academia Catavencu (Romania)

18.15 Conclusion

Issues for Further Discussion:

What measures have been taken by OSCE participating States to support
Roma who work in media? What measures have been taken by OSCE
participating States to combat prejudice, ignorance and misunderstanding
that Roma face? How can media be a tool in this effort? What good
practices exist in the OSCE area? 

What role can OSCE institutions (Representative on Freedom in the Media,
OSCE missions, ODIHR, etc.) play?

How can mainstream media work to cover issues impacting Romani
communities more accurately? How can the media involve more journalists,
editors, etc. of Romani ethnicity?

(How) do Romani media reach and educate ethnic majority audiences? How
can NGOS, which do not produce media, help media producers to improve
their images of Roma?

Background documents:

The Role of the Media in Portraying the Roma and Perpetuating Prejudice,
by Jarmila Balazova, 31/7/2003 background paper for Regional Seminar of
Experts for Eastern Europe, Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights

Media Pustikelin (Media Relations Guide for the Roma, Romani version), L
Abdela and T Symonds, 2001 Media Diversity Institute

Gypsies, Travellers and the Media: press regulation and the media in the
UK, R Morris, 2000 Media Diversity Institute

Results of the SEEMO Roma Media Meeting, 3/7/2003 Belgrade

OSCE Action Plan for Improvement of the Situation of the Roma and Sinti
in the OSCE Area Chapter III

Document of the Copenhagen Meeting of the Conference of the Human
Dimension of the CSCE, Copenhagen 1990, Paragraph 40.