Secretary General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadeera said steps were taken by Parliament to protect gender sensitivity. Among them the inclusion of the most neutral words in the revised Standing Orders published in 2018 to depict gender roles is a unique action.
The Secretary General also said that through the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus, they often raise their voices about the injustices faced by women and make positive interventions.
The Secretary General was participating in a workshop on Gender sensitive and Inclusive Media Reporting at the Movenpick Hotel on Tuesday (June 27).
The Secretary General said, “All these steps have been taken to create a society with richer human relations as people. Diversity is a beautiful thing. The first difference found in the human world is the difference between man and woman. But when this difference is interpreted socially, culturally and politically, it is possible to see male-dominated society in certain structures.
In such a background, one can see a tendency to become the other instead of the common humanity. We are making all these efforts to create a common humanity instead of ‘the other.’
The workshop was organised to raise awareness on why gender sensitive and inclusive media reporting is essential in a democracy and creating a space for parliamentary lobby correspondents and senior journalists to discuss the topic with people’s representatives and experts in the field, enabling them to better grasp the key principles of gender sensitive media reporting.
Gender trainer, Indika Dayaratne delivered the keynote speech on gender sensitivity and the importance of gender sensitivity in media reporting.
Chairperson of the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus Dr. Sudarshini Fernandopulle spoke on the ethics of reporting cases of violence against women, and News Editor of Ceylon Today Ms. Methmali Dissanayake presented her experience in gender sensitive media reporting. Former member of the Moratuwa Municipal Council, Attorney-at-Law Ms. Lihini Fernando expressed her views on the use of gender sensitive language.
MP Eran Wickramaratne presented his views on gender sensitive selection of stories, titles and content presentation.
The practical activities of the workshop were conducted by senior journalist Narada Bakmeeweva. The workshop was organised by the Women Parliamentarians’ Caucus, the Department of Communication of Parliament and the National Democratic Institute (NDI).