Introduction

The refresher seminar held at Colombo in Sri Lanka analysed the situations in war-torn Sri Lanka and the possible contribution of new digital technologies for peace. The main theme, “Journalists and media in the digital society for peace amidst conflicts“ helped explore the various aspects and sub-themes.

The refresher seminar had to be postponed twice due to war in the island which seems to have found some calm in recent months. The theme was explored and debated in three different sessions mainly due to the exigencies of the rich languages of this great island nation.

The event was also planned in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of the national journalists and writers association, which has made significant contribution to the national and international media.

Keynotes

Leaders, media experts, authors and scholars gave highly inspiring keynote addresses helping to comprehend the diverse aspects of the realities of the country and the region. They included Archbishop Oswald Gomis, Mr Leonard Hapuarachchi, Benedict Joseph, Edwin Ariyadasa, Thilina Samarasooriya, Nilani Kumuduni Manthinayake, Calistus Jaymane, Varghese Paul, Maurice Bollegala, Dickson Anthony and Camillus Perera.

The sub-themes included: Media, especially the new media, for peace and harmony in the context of ethnic conflicts; Digital technology for the uplifting of morality; Challenges of and with the new media; Importance of radio in this time of digital technology; Creative use of digital media to bring about a culture of peace and harmony; and Nation building after the war which ravaged the island for more than 30 years.
  
Sri Lanka’s Ethnic War since 1976

The latest ethnic conflicts and war in Sri Lanka started more than three decades ago in 1976. The island has two major ethnic groups: the majority Sinhala community and the minority Tamil community. As the Tamils found themselves in disadvantaged positions and treated as second-class citizens, they requested equal and dignified treatment and equal recognition of their linguistic and cultural heritage.

Instead of helping solve the problem in a spirit of overall national harmony and the recognition of traditions and wisdom, a considerable number foreign nations used the occasion to aggravate the situation and encourage division of the island. They promoted an independent Tamil state in the north of this island forming fanatics and giving them weapons. They encouraged ideas like: “If Cyprus can be divided why not Sri Lanka?”

Soon a guerrilla fighting army was formed under the name Tamil Tigers. Many Tamils immigrated worldwide and with the help of their foreign supporters, they began to contribute huge amounts for the creation of a Tamil Homeland. Early this year, the Sri Lankan government decided to bring an end to the fighting by sending the army to the northern parts of Sri Lanka, which were controlled by Tamil Tigers for decades. This was Asia’s longest civil war.

The war made many victims and caused deep wounds in the social, religious and cultural fabric of the nation. Those wounds can be healed only with considerable time and some miracles.

Today, everyone’s hope is that both ethnic groups will be brought together so that they can live peaceably side-by-side, upholding human principles and values of love and respect for each other.

Open Economy since 1977

It is not only the ethnic war that has destroyed Sri Lanka.  From 1977, Sri Lanka opened itself to foreign investment and hence promoted an open economy. Though its intentions were a wealthy state and healthy people, things went wrong faster than could be imagined.

An open economy helped first of all the sale of weapons to the Tamil Tigers as well as to the government and the conflict and wars were perpetuated.

There immediately followed new realities, which the island had formerly not known: drug addicts, paedophiles, child prostitution and women trafficking. Today the official number of drug addicts in Sri Lanka is more than 50,000; though the real figure may be three or four times higher.

People became poor as the best of products were destined for export. More than 30,000 children die or live half dead every year because of malnutrition.

Journalism is sacred and is the solution for true reconciliation

In this post war period, journalism is sacred in Sri Lanka, said the seminar’s resource persons. And journalists have to live up to those moral, sacred and divine expectations. It is in this regard that UCIP is irreplaceable and highly important, emphasised keynote speakers and participants. UCIP helps us become free, think freely and promote spiritual, moral and ethical values especially in the time of conflict, wars and post war-reconciliation.

And journalism based on these qualities and values does help the transformation of society and  journalists must be equipped with the values and knowledge that can liberate peoples as well as help them plan a bright future.

The seminar analysed various types of media and thus practices of journalism existing in South Asia. There are six major types of media: State media that is more a show of power; Private media, most of whom aim at making money; Civil society media which try to bring forward the unmet needs of people; Community media that concentrate on issues of a particular community; Linguistic media that cater mainly language, cultural and ethnic groups; and Religious media, most of whom promote their religions.

In spite of the considerable progress of the Internet, South Asia has developed a considerable number of newspapers and publications, as they are more direct and convenient. Newspapers and publications occupy the main place in the media landscape, as they are considered more serious with their in-depth analysis, powerful and appealing writing and the possibility of bringing them anywhere, and above all, the possibility to easily reread them, an advantage no other media can boast.
  
The Weakness of the Media

The major weakness of the media in Sri Lanka and in other parts of the world is the misuse of media power.

The seminar participants gave examples of cheating the audience and the big fines radio and television stations like the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) have had to pay in recent years. For example, the independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries (Ofcom) fined the BBC a whopping £400,000 for faking winners of competitions in eight TV and radio shows between 2005 and 2007.

The keynote speakers also questioned the credibility of live polls done over a few minutes during television news. Thus a CNN (the USA based Cable News Network) poll that does not give any details, such as the number of participants, can give results like 75% approval if 3 out of 4 have said yes or abstained, and the approval rate is a full 100% if all the four even kept silent, as silence is consent!

Such behaviour has now been brought into Sri Lanka, as it is a must to apply what was taught in those prestigious schools of the so called developed nations. Thus, in the name of freedom but without responsibility, many broadcasters unfortunately became part of the ethnic conflicts and destroyed their image. By taking sides and producing fake ratings like their masters, they could earn money, though it was widely considered unethical, immoral and inhuman.

The seminar participants expressed their grave concerns with regard to well-known educational institutions in the so called developed world that emphasise more on competition and making profit for a few at the cost of a big majority than on interdependence and experience of peoples to bring harmony and welfare to all.

Media freedom is indispensable

The seminar affirmed the importance of media freedom on all levels. And they explored how best they can make use of this precious gift. They said that freedom without responsibility and respect could be evil.

At the same time they requested not to loose faith in the media, taking inspiration from Mahatma Ghandi who advocated: “You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.” And hence they urged journalists: “You must be the change that you want to see in the world”- Mahatma Ghandi.

Freedom and the will to bring welfare to all are the two key ingredients of successful media, affirmed the seminar participants, giving concrete examples of media that catered to the common good. And in this regard, journalists and media should never take a break from accomplishing their noble tasks. It is not profit that makes successful media or business, as is taught in the “best” media, business and educational institutions.

New Media

The advent of new media, as everywhere in the world, has brought mixed feelings and reactions in Asia.  While computers gain ground, in some parts of Asia books have been reaching the hearts of people.  A young Asian woman said that books are real and sensual, while computers are dry and virtual.

In an evaluation on the new media such as “Twitter” and “Facebook”, all that many participants wanted was to get out of these destructive groups. Hence they said: “Give us back our lives”.

The seminar participants said that the new media should give an extra advantage in bringing truth to the forefront. Truth is the best argument to promote new media and make them accessible to all parts of the world. The new media also should promote respect for people, preserving their dignity, privacy and discretion, instead of instantly publishing words and images that not only convey any message and even give bad impression about the media and the persons and events they deal with.

Pieces of information can be worse than lies, said some of the participants and the new media have been taking advantage of giving out bits and pieces that are enough to make a sensation, a scoop and sow conflict and violence. Young people are often caught up in this malicious and vicious circle of speculation and misinformation.

Free Newspapers

One concrete idea put forward by the seminar participants is to conceive brief and comprehensive newspapers aimed at appreciation and advancement of all peoples. These newspapers can be distributed free if they can carry positive and informative advertisements.

In order to achieve this goal as well as follow up on the recommendations of this seminar, several new seminars are planned, especially an exclusive seminar for young journalists and media people.

Church and Media

The seminar analysed the relationship between the Church and the media in recent decades. In the 1940’s and 1950’s some people in the Church thought the media were evil or the work of evil. From 1960’s things began to change; the attitude was to train listeners and the Decree Inter Mirifica (4 Dec 1963) was issued. In 1970’s the emphasis was on professionalism.  Since the 1980’s, the Church has been saying that media are very important; communication is not just a tool but the very essence of life and the life force.

Recommendations

After various sessions, debates and analyses, the seminar issued some solid recommendations:

We, journalists, writers, publishers and professors of journalism, participating in this international journalists’ seminar have resolved the following analysis of the realities of Sri Lanka and South Asia and their implications on world levels:

1. It is our duty to promote peace and harmony in Sri Lanka among all human persons irrespective of all differences, especially in a context where the nation is looking for a new beginning, characterised by unity and welfare after the civil strife that has plagued the nation for more than three decades.

2. We invite all men and women of the media and all government, non-governmental, business and religious leaders of all nations to work for the social and spiritual wellbeing of all the peoples of the nation.

3. This is a unique opportunity for all nations in the world especially the donor nations to contribute to the initiatives of peace and unity within this beautiful island nation and thus help eliminate all eventual elements of division, conflict and war.

4. It is high time to support the efforts for peace, unity and development and not the evils of division and disharmony.

5. We also see that the same approach of “divide and rule” is used in other parts of the world especially in countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq and so on in order to sustain conflicts and war so that the nations that produce weapons and armaments can continue to make unjust profit at the cost of innocent peoples.

6. It is in the interest of all nations in the world to avoid hosting terrorist groups and their sympathisers whose goals are division and the destruction of nations and peoples. By doing this, they try to gain economic profit, political power and religious domination by obstructing the unity of peoples.

7. We appreciate the great ethnic, cultural and linguistic diversities of this pearl of the Indian Ocean as well as in all other parts of the world; the differences are the bases for ultimate respect and appreciation instead exclusion and isolation.

8. This seminar unanimously urges all nations, religions and the media and their leaders to do everything at this time of budding peace and integral welfare of the nations.

9. We invite all journalists and media experts to set apart time and space for peace and harmony and to weave networks to promote news that help build bridges and realise initiatives of development.

Exposure

The seminar team visited villages and places of historical and cultural importance in Colombo and Kandy so that they can get an exposure to the realities of the life of the people. The exposure also helped understand the realities of peoples caught up in conflicts and war as well the difficulties they face to come back to lead a normal life. The exposure also gave great enlightenment in the every day hardships of Sri Lankans and at the same time their joys.

Challenges

The seminar, its various sessions and the exposure demonstrated the importance of realising formative and inspiring events like this more frequently not only for journalists ad media experts but also to all professionals from all walks of life.

Several others countries in South Asia have requested to organise these types of events in the next years. The seminar keynote speakers, resource persons and participants have found that these seminars and refreshers prevent conflicts and they are more important than helping people after pushing them towards conflict and wars.