Full Coverage: Communication

28.11.2005 Two-week training for 26 students of the National University of Rwanda on radio journalism ended in Butare on 18 November 2005 with a graduation ceremony in the presence of the Rwandan Minister of Information.

25.11.2005 Several women NGOs from Skopje, in partnership with government ministries, launched the Don’t Hide It, Report it campaign earlier today, organized under the auspices of the 16 Days of Activism global campaign.

25.11.2005 Human rights organisation, Amnesty International says that despite the explicit aims of an inclusive and rights-based information society, many of the signatories to the WSIS Declaration of Principles continue to crack down on freedom of expression, censor the Internet and flaunt the basic standards of international law and human rights.

24.11.2005 The first university / community radio station in Rwanda was officially inaugurated last week in the Southern town of Butare, where the National University of Rwanda (NUR) is located.

22.11.2005 A two-week workshop on HIV/AIDS for young television producers was concluded in Accra on Friday,18 November, with a call to combat stigma and discrimination against people living with and affected by HIV and AIDS.

22.11.2005 Overcoming social barriers and geographical divides, a grassroots worker from India, Latha Gauri, has succeeded in creating a space for the concerns of the common people at the Second World Summit on Information Society (WSIS). The WSIS process, currently in progression at Tunis, the capital city of Tunisia in Africa seeks to create an Information Society which is accessible to all and based on shared knowledge.

18.11.2005 Media coverage of the effects of the tsunami helped inspire the fastest and largest-ever donation of disaster aid. But did that justify victims' most vulnerable moments being beamed around the world at the speed of light? Nalaka Gunawardene voices doubts.

17.11.2005 Public TV and radio have existed for years in Mongolia, but new changes are bringing hope that national broadcasting could become truly public service media for the first time; good news for Mongolia's dispersed population, though concerns remain about how to finance and manage the service.

17.11.2005 "Know your HIV/AIDS status and care and support and treatment available thereafter" is the objective of a District Level Communication Campaign on HIV that is being launched from Coimbatore district, the pioneer in the Tamil Nadu state.

15.11.2005 En route to the promised global village, the information superhighway is plagued by poor access and high fares that the bulk of this planet simply cannot afford. Reducing international internet costs is an important priority, underlined in a set of recommendations from the APC made to the WSIS stresses. APC's recommendations lay down a 11-step plan to making internet access both more "universal and affordable".

15.11.2005 The Chinese government knows that it is losing the battle to control the accessing and sharing of information it would prefer to restrict.

15.11.2005 This week Tunisia hosts the final meeting of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), hoping to establish equitable access to information and communication technologies worldwide. Ironically, Tunisia has yet to guarantee its citizens' freedom of expression, says Amnesty International.

14.11.2005 The Second Phase of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) will officially start on November 16, 2005 (Wednesday) in Tunis, Tunisia and will be completed on November 18 2005. The first phase of WSIS took place in Geneva and was hosted by the Government of Switzerland from 10 to 12 December 2003, where 175 countries adopted a Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action.

The UN General Assembly Resolution 56/183 (21 December 2001) endorsed the holding of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in two phases.

For more information on WSIS, its background and origins, please visit the website www.itu.int/wsis.

For more information on the events surrounding the WSIS Second Phase, visit the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) Blog.

Parallel to the WSIS, the Citizens’ Summit on the Information Society (CSIS) will be held, as well as other events (panels, discussions, debates, workshops, exhibitions).

OneWorld SEE will provide you with reports on the most important events, decisions and developments from WSIS Second Phase. For daily RSS update, visit the following Link.

12.11.2005 One World Broadcasting Trust is screening highlights of films about or in developing countries from its bursary scheme - an opportunity to get a glimpse of the work from these up and coming directors, London, 28 November.

09.11.2005 Inmarsat-4 F2, one of the largest and most powerful communications satellites ever built, has succesfully launched from a floating pad in the Pacific.

07.11.2005 Assisted by UNESCO, three women’s journalism organisations in the Democratic Republic of Congo recently hosted a workshop on reinforcing professional capacities and the treatment of information during election periods.

07.11.2005 Filipino singers have donated songs about the Millennium Development Goals to a new album, which hopes to raise awareness in the country and encourage more people to get involved in promoting the MDGs. Listen to them here.