:: FORUM FOR WOMEN, LAW & DEVELOPMENT ::

Media

Media is the strongest instrument to increase awareness and that drives people to being conscientious about the existing issues. Women in Nepal have been facing several problems due to the dominant patriarchy in the society. For the obliteration of laws against such problems and to ensure a better women's life, FWLD has been involving the media almost everywhere. We frequently inform, train and mobilize media persons for effective advocacy and for the discussion on our specific strategies. Media has been our strongest means to deliver our messages, be it in our researches, fact findings report, trainings and workshops announcements, our conferences and brainstorming meetings, our rallies and any other vital announcements.

Some of our major media campaigning have been performed in:

Media Campaign on "Importance to Enact Law Against Marital Rape "
Our most significant media campaigning on 17 May 2005 on "Importance to Enact Law Against Marital Rape" was held especially to mobilize media persons for effective advocacy to promulgate laws against marital rape and to discuss on strategies to promulgate and discuss strategies to promulgate a bill following the decision of the Supreme Court. A discussion program was organized with the media to discuss on the challenges to develop laws post directive order of the Supreme Court. The objective was also to lobby the government for effective implementation of the existing laws and mobilize media persons for advocacy.

Media Orientation on Discriminatory Laws against Women
A media orientation on the discriminatory laws against women was organized on 9 November 2006 at SAP Falcha. The program was organized by FWLD under the project Promote Equality Through Legal Reform, Litigation and Women's Representation in Judicial Sector. The program was supported by ARD-ROL. Materials relating to discriminatory laws were also disseminated to all the participants. Those materials were – "The study on Discriminatory laws in Nepal and Their Impact on Women", "Amendment Proposal to reform the discriminatory laws against women", "Gender Equality Bill, 2063", "Citizenship Bill, 2063" and the press release highlighting the major provisions of the Bill.

Media in National Conferences and Rallies
Media's support has been with us all the way through to get our messages across. On the very next day of the National Conference and Rally of "National Event for Gender Equality" on February 12, 2002 , strategies were shared with media persons in the Press Conference. The formation of media network has been proved a strong mechanism to raise our issues comprehensively. Recognizing the media as an effective means to fight against the discriminatory citizenship law, a rapid research was conducted in August 2005 with the direct involvement of the media persons from the various print as well as electronic media. The research was focused on identifying the problems of the certain affected groups, procedural and administrative complications in the concerned agencies, exploring various aspects and impacts of discriminatory citizenship laws, collecting the views of different political parties and providing suggestion for the solution.

During "A Movement for Equal Citizenship Right of Women" on February 2006, a notice inviting affected persons of discriminatory citizenship law to contact FWLD was published in various daily and weekly newspapers both in English and Nepali language. It was published in Drishti Weekly, in Bikalpa Weekly, in Kantipur and Himalaya Times, in Gorkhapatra and Samacharpatra. Notice was also aired by Radio Nepal and was disseminated through various means of communication.

Media has been involved in other major programs like: