Women's Empowerment and Good Governance Through - amarc

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Best Experiences for an Action Research Process
information, about the things that touch them the most. The result is that those who can neither
express their basic concerns nor have access to the kind of information, turn to radio
broadcasts from neighbouring countries in the hope of learning, as they will note with irony,
what is happening in their own country. They are at the same time looking for socio-cultural
and even political enrichment, and to compare, the information broadcast elsewhere with
what is offered to them at home. If answers to people’s questions are not to be found locally,
obviously citizens will tune in elsewhere. It is worth remembering that the advantage of radio,
whether it is national, local or community-based, is that one does not need to go anywhere.
Newspapers,need to be distributed regularly they have to respond to citizen concerns, which
is far from being the case. Radio is practical because almost everyone has one at home and
people have only to stretch out their arm to turn it on.
Just like it is the case for the three national networks, a public service, local radio stations suffer
from a lack of autonomy, which raises the essential question of freedom of expression.
Subjected to extreme censorship and deprived of financial autonomy, these radio stations are
reduced to broadcasting entertainment programs (50 per cent), socio-educational programs
(30 per cent), and centrally prepackaged news (20 per cent). Only one hour a week is given
over to the associative movement.
The government has indeed stated this clearly. There is no question for now of freeing up
the airwaves. If one is to believe statements made by the institutions in charge of it, such as
the Ministry of Communications and the Interior Ministry, the audiovisual sector is and will
continue to be the exclusive property of the State. Of a state, in other words, that values its
own preservation over and above its concern for the wellbeing of its citizens in terms of news
delivery, freedom or a more open society. The impertinence displayed on a daily basis by a
written press which has been independent for 15 years now and which is highly critical of the
government has taught the authorities their lesson, and they are anxious to avoid repeating
this experience with the audiovisual sector. The impact of the broadcast media, such as television
and radio, is considered even more dangerous because of reaching a greater number of
people.
A survey which our association “Women in Communication” carried out of eight local radio stations,
is interesting because of their geographical location and linguistic, cultural and economic