A two-day media forum today opened in Kigali with over 150 media leaders and top journalists from around the continent in attendance. Dubbed “Turning the Page of Hate Media in Africa”, the dialogue is expected to launch a platform through which African journalists can collectively campaign against hate media in professional journalism. The Prime Minister, Pierre Damien Habumuremyi, is expected to deliver a keynote address, while participants will debate strategies to deal with intolerance, discriminatory discourse, religious fundamentalism and cultural biases. Media High Council (MHC), the lead organisers, says that the dialogue is timely since it is taking place at a time when Rwanda is marking the 20th anniversary of the Genocide against the Tutsi. “We are pleased to host this important event in Rwanda which allows local journalists to be part of the campaign to fight against any form of hate speech,” said Peacemaker Mbungiramihgo, the Executive Secretary of the MHC. In attendance are representatives of the African Union, the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, the International Association of Women in Radio and Television, the African Editors Forum, the Federation of African Journalists, and several national journalists unions. In 1994, some media outlets and practitioners played a major role in inciting violence during the Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.
