Bangkok, 08 September 2004-- Women’s information and communication organisations formed the Media and ICT Caucus in the ongoing Asia-Pacific High Level Meeting to review the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA). The move was meant to collectively assert the reaffirmation and full implementation of the BPFA, particularly its Women and Media Section or what is commonly referred to as Section J.

The Beijing Platform for Action is the main output document of the Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing, China in 1995. It aims to accelerate the implementation of the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women; and remove all the obstacles to women's active participation in all spheres of public and private life through a full and equal share in economic, social, cultural and political decision-making.

Along with the call for the Platform’s reaffirmation and full implementation, the Media and ICT Caucus highlighted the persistent issues in the area of media and the new information and communication technologies (ICTs). Among these are: the continued negative and stereotypical portrayal of women in the media, the under representation of women in decision-making positions in media organisations, and women’s lack of access to ICT training. The Caucus also drew attention to issues that emerged after 1995 and the 5-year review of the BPFA in 2000. These include:

the rapid development of the new information and communication technologies;
the ways by which ICTs have changed media production and distribution;
the ways by which women’s communication and advocacy tools have been redefined; and
the increasing commercialisation and globalisation of the media.

Even as they cited the persistent and emerging issues, the Caucus underscored the various initiatives that women’s media organisations have taken as a response to those issues. At the parallel session on Gender Responsive Information Society held today, Chat Garcia Ramilo from the Association for Progressive Communications-Women’s Networking Support Programme and Sharon Bhagwan Rolls from FemLink Pacific and AMARC, cited the engagement of women’s groups in gender and ICT policy discussions and women’s use of community and independent media, respectively. Bhagwan Rolls also stressed the need for women to be active in ICT policy formulation and the actual development of the technologies “to avoid being left behind.”

In another event, the ‘Dialogue with Government Delegates’ organised by the Asia-Pacific NGO Forum, Mavic Cabrera-Balleza from Isis International-Manila and AMARC, emphasized the same issues and called on government delegates to create more responsive regulatory frameworks to support all forms of community and independent media. She also stressed that women’s active involvement in the media ensures diversity and plurality of views and allows women’s and people’s organisations to promote the goals of gender equality.

Meanwhile, in today’s official plenary, the Pacific island countries through the Pacific Regional Report, supported the Media and ICT Caucus’ recommendation to recognise “community media and independent media as enabling mechanisms to achieve the goals of gender equality.” Another expression of support to community and independent media efforts came from the Philippine delegation. Ms. Imelda Nicolas, the head of the delegation, called attention to the opportunities that community and independent media provides women that enable them to participate in media production and decision-making in the media. She also underlined the fact that despite the significant role that this type of media plays in advancing women’s status, many governments in the Asia-Pacific region have yet to recognise and support such initiatives.

The Media and ICT Caucus, along with other NGO caucuses, will present its statement at the official plenary on 10 September, the closing day of the High-Level Meeting.

The Media and ICT Caucus is composed of the following women’s information and communication organisations: AMARC-(World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters)-Women’s International Network, Antenna Foundation Nepal, Association for Progressive Communications-Women’s Networking Support Programme, FemLink Pacific, Isis International-Manila, and Sancharika Samuha-Nepal.

- Report from Mavic Cabrera-Balleza of Isis International-Manila and AMARC-Women’s International Network, Bangkok, Thailand