UJOSS roots for professionalism
By Michael Tapeng
Some 30 journalists have been trained on human rights and ethical reporting skills.
The two-day training by the Union of Journalists of South Sudan was sponsored by UNMISS Human Rights Division.
Speaking during the opening of the workshop at Quality Hotel in Juba on Monday, UJOSS President Patrick Oyet Charles said the training would empower journalists to accurately report on human rights.
“As UJOSS, We are encouraging specialization in addition to what you already know. If you can do more training in human rights reporting, you need to take interest in international human rights laws,” Oyet said.
Adding, “Though rights are not obsolete, there are some limitations. Whether we are talking about women or children or our own rights, we still have some limitations and we should protect these human rights”.
Oyet emphasized the significance of such trainings adding that they would influence policies on rights protection.
Sapana Abuyi, the Director General for Media Authority lauded UJOSS for being at the forefront in advancing professionalism in the media sector.
“As Media Authority, we are always very happy when such occasions are organized to develop the capacity of journalists. This particular workshop is going to address several issues in journalism regarding the reporting ethically,” he stated.
He said the training would guide journalists on how to report human rights issues.
“Ethics guide you as journalists to do your work professionally. You journalists need to know how to report on human rights,” adds Sapana Abuyi.
Denis Chenwi, UNMISS Human Rights Officer pledged UNMISS’ commitment to continue partnering with UJOSS to ensure journalists master skills in ethical and human rights reporting.
He said UNMISS-Human Rights Division will support UJOSS to co conduct similar workshops across all states in the country.
“The partnership we have with UJOSS is a very good one, and we want it to continue to grow. One of the aspects of this partnership is the development of the capacity of journalists,” he said.
