Four young people are heading off to Cape Town, South Africa tomorrow to work with Bush Radio – a youth run community radio station. They are part of a United Youth programme run by youth organisation Public Achievement for unemployed young people from across Belfast.
During their 10 day trip they will help to organise the “Media Kidocracy Konference” for children and young people from around Cape Town, and they will work at Bush Radio – including being interviewed on radio and making their own programme.
Craig Murray, Shanti Mawhinney, Sarah Louise Duffy and Aoibhinn Di Torí are all participants in pilots of the “United Youth” programme which is part of the NI Executive’s good relations programme administered through the Department of Employment and Learning. The group will be accompanied by project Coordinator Chiara Cariddi.
Paul Smyth, CEO of Public Achievement said “We are delighted to be sending this group to Bush Radio. This relationship is about exposing our young people to some of the best community radio practitioners in the world as well as learning about the history of South Africa and the challenges it still faces. We believe it will be a lifechanging experience for the group – and will help them to better understand diversity and the relationship between people and communities across the world”.
French journalist Sophie Massieu, her guide dog; Pongo and director, Olivia Buffi and crew were at Bush Radio to film a segment for a new documentary series called “Through your eyes”. Sophie is undertaking a journey with people from all around the world and trying to capture their feelings and heritage.
They are in South Africa for two reasons; to strengthen the relationship with Bush Radio and to attend a research project discussion in Cape Town.
Paul Smyth said that when he visited Bush Radio 12 years ago it challenged and changed the way he views youth work and and was one of the seeds that led to the creation of WIMPS 4 years later.
Paul explained that the research project that they are involved in will look at different organisations around the world and how they work with young people in ways that encourage young people to change political systems.
Seven organisations are part of the research in SA and they are drawn from Northern Ireland, South Africa and the United States.
WIMPS is an organisation that tries to make politics more accessible to young people, it’s about trying to make young people use their voices and make politicians accountable for their actions.
Stephen added that the work done by Bush Radio is fantastic and that it is essential to stretch this kind of work to Northern Ireland.
After intense planning and a busy week the 12th Annual Media Kidocracy Konfrence (MKK2012) came to an end on Friday, the 14th of December 2012.
About 80 youth delegates (aged 12 – 21) drawn from all over the country, SADC and as far away as Northern Ireland attended MKK.
Below are the “products” which showcase how the young people interpreted the various themes outlined for this year. For a large percentage of the delegates this was the first time they had been directly involved in the production of media. A strong element of all the MKK conferences have been linking a practical implementation of ideas generated in the various intensive panel discussions and workshop groups.
This year’s theme was Youth Participation in Democracy, with sub-themes being:
Youth Rights and Civic Participation – Human Rights
We have been really grateful to all the people who have given and shared goodwill with us to help keep the station going. The support has been amazing, from Aunty Val who dropped off sugar and tea, to singers Lira and Thandiswa Mazwai who recorded messages of support for us.
Appeals have also gone international; former interns have donated and our friends at Public Acheivement* in Northern Ireland have put together a screening of the Academy Award winning film Tsotsi this Sunday the 6th November 2011.
* Public Achievement is Northern Ireland’s leading youth-focussed civic education organisation, and over the last 9 years they have been a partner with Bush Radio in a variety of projects including a youth project addressing violence as experienced by young people.
On the final day the young delegates (12 – 18 years old) presented their productions in a four hour closing ceremony which included video, online, graffiti and radio presentations.
The closing ceremony also included performances by young Capetonian talent such as Shaz & B, Apple and Cinnamon and Grand Alliance.
The photographers have captured the contrast between the beauty of our natural landscape and the filth that soils it.
The television group challenged us to re-examine our so-called natural ways of being as men and women with respect to violence within the home.
The graffiti group showed through their piece that although we may differ linguistically and/or culturally, we can live in harmony.
The online and radio groups have spread the word that violence is not and never will be an option, be it violence inflicted by others through forced child labour or self-inflicted violence in the form of substance abuse.
Together these products send a resounding message that states that their vision for tomorrow is one in which they wish not to live in fear and is filled with hope.
We would like to thank the following individuals and organizations for their assistance through advice and contributions in making this conference a success:
St Agnes Primary School and in particular the principal Mr. Alfonso Louw and caretaker Mr. Marsh.
Brenda Leonard and Belinda Sepkit from Bush Radio’s admin department who made the lunches
All the production facilitators and content facilitators.
The guest speakers who joined us on the first day of the conference, especially Ms Jennifer Hartnick from the Provincial Parliament whose kind and gentle words set a good tone for the conference.
We would also like to thank our delegates who joined us from as far a-field as Northern Ireland (Public Achievement) and Canada (Canada World Youth).
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