OSCE Centre conducts ethics training for Kyrgyz journalists reporting on human trafficking

BISHKEK, 28 April 2015 – The OSCE Centre in Bishkek is supporting a training course for journalists titled Trafficking in human being: journalists’ ethics and social responsibility of media to be held on 28 April 2015 in Bishkek.

Some 30 journalists from print, internet, TV and radio, students from journalism departments of the Kyrgyz Slavonic University, the Bishkek Humanitarian University, and representatives from National Institute of Strategic Studies will take part in the training course.

OSCE-supported media trainers Igor Shestakov and Adel Laisheva will review the method of TV and radio journalist’s work and issues they are confronted with when covering human trafficking.

Training participants will also learn about ethics principles when interviewing victims, discuss social responsibility, and develop a code of conduct for journalists who report on anti-trafficking issues.

“Trafficking in human beings concerns all OSCE participating States, both as a security threat and as a human rights issue,” says Graziella Pavone, Human Dimension Officer at the OSCE Field office in Osh. “By covering human trafficking crimes and the stories of their victims, journalists have a great responsibility: raising awareness and forming public opinion. Unbiased journalism has the potential of preventing human trafficking and promoting a culture of zero tolerance to it. Anybody can become a victim of trafficking; information is power and can save lives.”

It is expected that the OSCE Centre in Bishkek will hold two other similar trainings in Osh and Jalal-Abad this May.