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femLINKpacific
was established in September 2000 and is registered under the Charitable
Trust Act in Fiji. The
overarching focus of
femLINKpacific’s range of community media initiatives is “women
speaking to women for peace”, a direct link with the women’s peace
initiatives during the May 2000 crisis, in particular the Blue Ribbon
Peace Vigil, where femLINKpacific was “born”.
Women of the Peace Vigil: Mrs. Joana Bale talks to the
international press during the hostage crisis in 2000 The
overarching development objective
of our work is to address the imbalances caused by the traditional
decision-making structures which impede women and young women’s
effective participation, especially from the rural population and the
poor, to communicate openly on common matters.
The concerns of women market vendors are highlighted in our
community videos "Not Just Sweet Talk" and "Everyday
Women" Once
people are able to share their opinions freely and safely, then we can
say we are truly experiencing democracy
The FRIEND broadcast team ...on air during our first
broadcast in the western division, January 22 2005 Inspired
by
the women who have led the way in Fiji’s women’s movement and women’s
media activism and motivated by Section J of the Beijing Platform for
Action (Women and Media), we were further strengthened by the unanimous
adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, titled Women, Peace and
Security (October 2000).
Thinking
globally and acting locally (and regionally)
femLINKpacific develops, produces and distributes a range of women’s
community media initiatives including a monthly Enews Bulletin; a
regional Women and Peace magazine titled “femTALK 1325” and
community videos initiatives. We also assist and provide practical
training for
our community partners in media advocacy via the mainstream media, media
monitoring; as well as developing and undertaking
communications and media strategies for women and peace events In
2003 we won the Fiji Human
Rights Commission World Press Freedom Day award (Television category)
for fem’TALK Balancing the Scales and later that year we were selected
as one of the 6 finalists in the Outstanding Individual or Community-Based
Initiative, Advocacy/Networking category for the Gender and ICT Awards 2003; we
also were Selected by InterAction's Commission on the Advancement of
Women (CAW) and the International Institute for Rural Reconstruction (IIRR)
as a case study for
inclusion in the Asian Innovative Practices (AIP) publication |
Filming at the home of Sumintra Kumar, our field equipment
is a small digital video camera By
developing and implementing a range of women’s media initiatives, such
as taking a small mobile radio unit out to women and the communities,
femLINKpacific offers a “safe space” to articulate and exchange
their viewpoints.
Women in Navua in pre broadcast preparations…what are our
issues …preparing to be interviewed Our community broadcast process
enables women to prepare for their broadcast For
example, with femTALK 89.2FM by using the low-power transmitter, we
encourage women to speak to each other and with their communities.
Pre broadcast interviews ...enable us to share women’s stories and issues from one broadcast site to another In
May 2004 we launched fem’TALK 89.2fm
“The suitcase radio” fem’TALK
89.2FM is Fiji’s first mobile women’s community radio project, and
uses a low power (100 watt) transmitter to broadcast within local
communities With
a small team of volunteers and in partnership with several NGO?CSO
groups we have started to stage monthly broadcasts in Suva and are
looking forward to taking the ‘suitcase radio’ to women in their communities
This
is a not for profit initiative which aims to provide airtime for women
and peace initiatives, and space for “women to talk to women” about
their critical issues of concern. femLINKpacific
works in consultation with several NGO partners, in particular ECREA, Catholic
Women’s League Fiji, Fiji Media Watch, Fiji Disabled People’s
Association Women’s Group, Interfaith Search Fiji and individual women
who are members of our management collective femLINKpacific
Community Media Initiatives include: A monthly Enews bulletin and media
action alerts; femTALK 89.2FM a mobile women’s community radio project;
fem’TALK 1325 A quarterly Women and Peace community magazine which
aims to provide media space for women and peace initiatives in our
Pacific region & accelerate regional implementation of UN Security
Council Resolution 1325, titled Women, Peace and Security; fem’TALK
Community videos which are produced to highlight and support the
important role of women’s civil society groups and NGOs who work
tirelessly to advance the status of women and girls For
more information contact: The Coordinator, fem’LINKpacific:
Media Initiatives for Women, P O Box 2439 Government Buildings, Suva,
Fiji Islands, Phone: 679 3316290, Fax c/- 679 3301925, Email: femlinkpac@connect.com.fj
We are located in the NGO-space of
Caines Jannif HO, Victoria Parade, Suva |
