by Melanie Y. Pinlac
Respect for human rights is an essential hallmark of a democracy, and a reason why the media could and should function freely. Stories on human rights, however, seldom hit the front pages of newspapers or appear among the top stories of TV news programs. More often than not, such stories land in the inside pages—that is, if they get printed or aired at all. If a human rights issue is given front-page treatment in the newspapers or is the top story in TV news pro-grams, the issue usually involves prominent personalities. Either that or the number of fatalities has reached near astro-nomical heights.
The paucity of human rights reporting in the Philippine press prompted the London-based Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR) to launch the Philippine Human Rights Reporting Project, together with the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines (NUJP), the Center for Community Journalism and Development, and the news agency MindaNews. IWPR seeks to “build peace and democracy through free and fair media.”
During a roundtable discussion at the University of the Philippines on the media’s role in reporting human rights last Jan.18, Alan Davis, IWPR’s Director for Special Projects, said that this project aims to improve human rights reporting and create a network of human rights reporters in the Philippines.
The project proponents want to develop a deeper awareness of human rights among Filipinos, Davis said. “The key thing is to move beyond the media and promote more awareness.” Citizens, he added, should understand that human rights concern everyone and not just activist groups or human rights advocates.
Importance of Human Rights Reporting
Victims of human rights violations and their families welcomed the efforts to improve human rights reporting in the country, stressing the importance of the press in propagating their cause and continuing their fight. Editha Burgos, mother of abducted activist Jonas Burgos and wife of the late press icon Jose Burgos, said that the efforts to promote human rights reporting could help empower victims by not letting the issues die.
Meanwhile, Commission on Human Rights chair Purificacion Quisumbing called on reporters do monthly updates on human rights violations. Quisumbing said that if media keep ignoring these cases, they “will drop out of sight.”
The representatives of civil society groups present during the discussion also said that the media should report efforts to protect human rights.
Other plans
IWPR and its partners also launched the Philippine Human Rights Reporting Project website (http://www.rightsreporting .net) during the discussion. The site contains commissioned feature articles and daily news reports on issues and cases involving human rights.
Last year they started going around provinces where they held consultations with the local media in Cotabato, Iligan, Osamis City, and Negros. Aside from providing training for journalists, the Human Rights Reporting Project is planning to put together 14 modules for journalists to use in reporting on human rights.
Human rights violations have been steadily rising in the Philippines, with the number of extra-judicial killings, abductions and harassments in the hundreds.
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