Peace building & Security

Geneva, March 23, 2009 -- Insecurity in Geneva, but also other Swiss and French towns in the region, has been growing over the past several years. This includes a rise in burglaries, car thefts and other methods of robbery, such as baggage swiping on trains at the main railway station or at the airport. Notable, however, is an upfront form of robbery known as the “Zidane Move.”This is an old trick used by thieves to steal wallets or cellphones. These attacks are aimed mainly at men and are increasingly on the rise. The Essential Edge has now interviewed over a dozen people who have recently fallen for this trick.

Twenty editors, reporters and producers from countries ranging from India and Afghanistan to the Philippines, Eritrea and Switzerland attended the week-long “Ending War, Building Peace” workshop in Geneva earlier this month. Part of the group also visited Southern Lebanon as part of a five-day field trip to explore the humanitarian impact of the 2006 war with Israel, particularly the proliferation of cluster bombs and other ordnance in civilian-populated areas. The workshop, which was part of the Media21 Global Journalism Network’s (www.media21geneva.org) ongoing “global issues” initiative, was organized in partnership with the Geneva Centre for Security Policy/GCSP (www.gcsp.ch)

The Media21 Global Journalism Network and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) will be holding an interactive and practical two-week workshop (March 31-April 12, 2008) in Geneva and Southern Lebanon to explore the effectiveness of international peacekeeping and peacebuilding efforts

Many donor governments and aid organizations still have problems grasping the crucial importance of involving media as the most effective way for putting across key global issues, such as climate change, health, migration, human rights and intellectual property. All too often, they regard media support as an afterthought or a public relations exercise. A better informed press, however, can respond to real needs, including the critical monitoring of the world aid industry, which urgently requires greater accountability, not only the public-at-large but vis-a-vis the very people - notably the victims - they are supposed to be helping.