Africa-Press – Lesotho. In commemoration of the World Contraception Day, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in partnership with Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Lesotho, Lesotho Planned Parenthood Association (LPPA) and the Ministry of Health (MoH), held a week long training for journalists on Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) reporting hosted at Maseru and Quthing interchangeably.
The day is annually celebrated on September 26. UNFPA Communications Assistant, Violet Maraisane while briefing journalists on International Conference of Population and Development (ICPD) stressed the SRHR as a crucial Media Agenda because it recognizes the right to sexual and reproductive health services as a universal human right, which every country must respect.
She said the role of journalists when reporting on SRHR is to demand accountability from policy makers, publish stories of human interests by documenting experiences and make reporting SRHR a core responsibility.
Maraisane further encouraged the journalists to implement transformational journalism, which encompasses the use of data, spotting SRHR story, involving people and their experiences, being on top of trending issues, being solution-oriented and understanding the ecosystem of SRHR.
MISA Lesotho Chairperson, Lekhetho Ntsukunyane when talking about effective reporting on ICPD issues, asked journalists to hold duty bearers accountable and ask them questions.
He put more emphasis on digging deeper on laws, balancing stories, giving voice to the voiceless, using the accepted language, establishing good relationships with local and international organizations and committing to report on ICPD issues as media personnel.
LPPA #BecauseWeCan Project Coordinator, Tlali Matela conveyed to journalists that while reporting SRHR issues they must remember an important matter of values, for both news subjects, consumers of information and writers or presenters.
These values include the right to dignity, equality, privacy, education, healthy life and control over bodies, to feel safe, to marry and not to be discriminated against.
Matela further disclosed that #BecauseWeCan advocates for promotion of Comprehensive Sexuality Education for young people because when young people are well equipped with knowledge, they stand a good chance of making informed decisions about their sexual lives.
“The project is targeted at promoting elimination of HIV among young people, child marriages, reduction of early and unintended pregnancies and increasing HIV prevention knowledge,” he said.
This worldwide campaign was launched in 2007 and its mission is to improve awareness of contraception and to enable young people to make informed choices on their sexual reproductive health.
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