September 6, 2021
By: Aruna Kamara (BO)
The Station Manager of Njala University (NU) Radio, Ambassador Jonathan Hindolo Kurabu has categorically stated that the journalists and the civil Society activists will be committed to educating the public with the necessary information to discourage irregular migration.
He spoke at the opening ceremony of the four days training on Media engagement and migration reporting for journalists and civil society activists, organized by International Organization for Migration, held at the DOHAS Hotel Conference Hall in Bo on Wednesday.
According to Mr. Kurabu, the journalists has a critical role to play in discouraging people from embarking on what he described as a ‘Perilous Journey of no Return, adding that as a journalists he has seen footages of people embarking on ‘temple run’ with lot challenges being encountered, which should be explained to the potential migrants that will discourage them to embark on irregular migration.
The Regional Vice Chairman of the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) in the southern Region, Alpha M. Laluba said that IOM did not make a mistake to bringing journalists and CSOs on board as they have been over the years left out.
He said that it is a step in the right direction to bring journalists together to be trained on reporting on migration, adding that the training will go a long way to equip the journalists and the CSOs to be adequately informed to educate the potential migrants on embarking on a perilous journey.
A Civil Society representative, Victor Karbo thanked IOM for the capacity building of CSOs and the Media to enhance their work on educating the public, particularly would be migrants, pointing out that the Media and the CSOs need to correct the misinformation in the public domain in order to save the youths from embarrassment.
Giving the overview of the Migrants as messenger project, the Project Assistant of Migrants As Messengers(MAM) of IOM , Mohamed Barrie said that MAM is a peer-to peer messaging campaign where returning migrants share with their communities and families the dangers, trauma, and abuse that many experienced while attempting irregular migration.
From smartphones to social media platforms and social networks, returnees will share their stories to generate awareness and to provide advice and information on misconception about living abroad.
He went on to say that the overall objective of migrants as messengers is to provide access to information that will allow for informed migration related decision making in target countries in West Africa. Specifically, MAM supports its primary audience (aspiring migrants, young adults between 17 and 25 years old, male and female) to make better decisions on migration.
Mr. Barrie said that regular migration is the most appropriate way of going overseas and they are expecting the journalists to adequately inform what would be migrants about the potential dangers of irregular migration including inhuman treatment.
The Communications and Public Relations Assistant of International Organization for Migration (IOM), Alfred Fornah said that migration is a global phenomenon, which has always been a method of adaptation and contributes to the wealth, dynamism, survival and stability of societies.
Today, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates that one out of every seven people, or one billion people, is a migrant-someone who has moved across an international border, or within a state, away from their habitual place of residence.
“There are internal migrants: those who move but stay within their country of origin, and international migrants: those who leave their country of origin or country of habitual residence to another country. As of 2017, there were 763 million internal migrants and 272 million international migrants-That’s equivalent to 3,5 percent of the world population(UNCHR,2019). There are also 60 million forcibly displaced people –those who fled a situation of conflict and/or prosecution ; more than 20 million of whom have fled outside their country of origin referred to as refugees,’’ he said.
Journalists Mr. Fornah said have an obligation to report on issues of migration and that refugees and human trafficking is an accurate ,fair, balance, humane and ethical way, adding that research and news report indicate the issue of migration affects countries across the globe on the political, economic, demographic, security ,cultural and other fronts.
He said that it is important for media to become as knowledgeable as possible on the subject and to create awareness in their respective communities by reporting on it in the best way possible and that guidance should be provided for journalist to that they can better understand the complexities of migration of migration; explain how migration can be covered through people-and rights based story telling; have a solid understanding of where and how to find migration related story ideas and sources; understanding the laws and procedures surround the different forms of migration and apply ethical considerations during reporting.
However, IOM is reducing the risk of regular migration through awareness raising campaigns, delivered within the migrants as messenger project and also promotion of youth employment and entrepreneurship in Sierra Leone, which is contributing to youth and women’s empowerment through vocational and entrepreneurship skills. Through this initiative, the youths are equipped with market driven vocational skills to enhance their employability.
IOM will also facilitate internship opportunities for trainees with private companies. Others will be trained in business management and one million people will be reached through awareness raising campaigns on the risk of irregular, migration.
The object of reducing the risk of irregular migration through promotion of youth employment and Entrepreneurship is to preserve the space and foster national cohesion through an inclusive approach that promotes youth and young women’s empowerment and entrepreneurship to dissuade irregular migration and human trafficking in Sierra Leone.