Iraq: Aug ‘08
Campaigners say IWPR’s reporting on women’s issues is attracting the attention of decision-makers.
Iraq: Aug ‘08
Campaigners say IWPR’s reporting on women’s issues is attracting the attention of decision-makers.
Women’s activists and journalists say IWPR work in Iraq has raised awareness of women’s issues and given women a voice in the Iraqi media.
IWPR Iraq programmes concentrate heavily on training female journalists and media professionals in women’s organisations. Its reports typically highlight women’s issues which are often lacking in Iraqi newspapers.
"It makes me really happy to have journalism institutions like IWPR which really care about women rights and takes its job seriously,” said Zaineb Arshad, a women’s rights activist based in Kirkuk. “I’ve read several articles about women on the Institute’s website. These articles and stories are really shedding lights on important issues concerning different aspects of women lives.”
Arshad also singled out IWPR stories for “reflecting the reality of Iraqi women".
Chrow Omsan Hawrami, director of women’s affairs for the Sulaimaniyah-based Iraqi Council for Peace and Cooperation which promotes peace and reconciliation, said that IWPR’s reporting has worked “directly for women and has played a strong role in helping women get their voices heard with relevant parties. Women alone cannot get their message across.
“IWPR is always trying to develop [female reporters’] skills and empower them. [Their] reports urge women’s organisations to make stronger efforts for [women] and those in charge to find solutions for women's problems."
Samira Mohammed, an editor and women’s activist, said IWPR several years ago identified a “shortcoming” in the north, where few female journalists were being trained.
“They’ve done a good thing by training many women journalists who now have by-lines in the mass media,” she said.
Mohammed said IWPR has raised the bar of professional reporting in Iraqi Kurdistan, noting that the Institute was widely considered “a means of support for the Kurdish media … It has preserved its neutrality, which is something that is rarely seen in local media outlets, whether they are privately owned or run by parties”.
Suhaila Omar, spokeswoman for the Kirkuk-based non-governmental organisation Mother and Child Organisation, said IWPR’s reports were improving conditions for women because they “attract the attention of the country’s decision-makers”.
She said that IWPR’s dissemination of its articles to campaigners and politicians nationwide was “a good attempt to raise the status of women and attract the widest readership among people who are really interested in women’s affairs”.
IWPR Iraq programmes concentrate heavily on training female journalists and media professionals in women’s organisations. Its reports typically highlight women’s issues which are often lacking in Iraqi newspapers.
"It makes me really happy to have journalism institutions like IWPR which really care about women rights and takes its job seriously,” said Zaineb Arshad, a women’s rights activist based in Kirkuk. “I’ve read several articles about women on the Institute’s website. These articles and stories are really shedding lights on important issues concerning different aspects of women lives.”
Arshad also singled out IWPR stories for “reflecting the reality of Iraqi women".
Chrow Omsan Hawrami, director of women’s affairs for the Sulaimaniyah-based Iraqi Council for Peace and Cooperation which promotes peace and reconciliation, said that IWPR’s reporting has worked “directly for women and has played a strong role in helping women get their voices heard with relevant parties. Women alone cannot get their message across.
“IWPR is always trying to develop [female reporters’] skills and empower them. [Their] reports urge women’s organisations to make stronger efforts for [women] and those in charge to find solutions for women's problems."
Samira Mohammed, an editor and women’s activist, said IWPR several years ago identified a “shortcoming” in the north, where few female journalists were being trained.
“They’ve done a good thing by training many women journalists who now have by-lines in the mass media,” she said.
Mohammed said IWPR has raised the bar of professional reporting in Iraqi Kurdistan, noting that the Institute was widely considered “a means of support for the Kurdish media … It has preserved its neutrality, which is something that is rarely seen in local media outlets, whether they are privately owned or run by parties”.
Suhaila Omar, spokeswoman for the Kirkuk-based non-governmental organisation Mother and Child Organisation, said IWPR’s reports were improving conditions for women because they “attract the attention of the country’s decision-makers”.
She said that IWPR’s dissemination of its articles to campaigners and politicians nationwide was “a good attempt to raise the status of women and attract the widest readership among people who are really interested in women’s affairs”.
