We – a group of independent Iraqi female journalists based in Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan – announce the establishment of our organization, Women’s Empowerment in the Media.
Our ambition is to empower female journalists working in all sectors – in written, audio-visual and radio reporting. We want to improve the existing gender gap in local media institutions and outlets, and help to develop the professional skills of women working in this field, so that they may advance their careers and take on whichever roles they wish to in the sector, including at senior or management levels. We also want to increase awareness of, and improve, occupational safety and standards for female journalists.
We have set our objectives as follows, and we seek to achieve these through cooperation with local and international organizations:
- Empowering women working in the field of media, whether they are active in written, audio-visual, radio or community media, by increasing professionalism and by capacity building.
- Improving female media professionals’ awareness of occupational safety, whether that is physical, psychological or digital safety. This will help local women reporters avoid exposure to blackmail or bullying of any kind – either in the physical or digital realm – because of the work they do or the positions they take.
- Improving female media professionals’ awareness of laws and legislation in Iraq and assisting them with introductions to legal aid and volunteer lawyers should they require them.
- Defending the human rights of female journalists in Iraq and Iraqi Kurdistan.
- Advocating for female media staffers, where appropriate, in professional disputes – for example, should there be human resources issues in their workplaces – and helping to find lawyers who can assist them in this respect.
- Identifying the needs of female journalists working in the field, in cooperation with similar local, regional and international organizations, by conducting periodic surveys and field studies.
- Seeking to further professionalism among Iraqi women working in media.
- Supporting female journalists subjected to any kind of assault or abuse from government agencies, in cooperation with international organizations.
- Assisting female journalists who are forced to leave their homes, or displaced, because of their work and providing them with psychological and financial support, as the organization’s budget allows.
We have put in place various mechanisms to achieve these objectives and we will make further announcements on our website. For more details and to receive future updates, please get in touch:
visit our site here
We will launch our website in Arabic and English shortly.
We also wish to establish an information hub specifically for female journalists where we will provide news on job opportunities as well as workshops and other training possibilities right around Iraq.
Signed,
The founders of the organization, Women’s Empowerment in the Medi
