Gaza - Community Media Center

The Community Media Center (CMC) accomplished remarkable achievements during the year 2022 in terms of promoting a culture of human rights in society, specifically the rights of women and youth, in addition to developing the role of the media in addressing their issues through its three programs: the Advocacy Program, the Research and Information Program, and the Empowerment and Building Program.

In this report, we share with you the most important accomplishments of CMC during the past year, the most important achievements, and some of the challenges it faced.

CMC received the year 2022 whilst trying to overcome the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact on all sectors of civil work, in addition to the effects and results of the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip during 2021, and the moral and material damage it left behind on all citizens, specifically the category of women and youth. Despite these challenges, the past year marked a turning point in terms of relations and partnerships with international and local governmental, civil and media institutions, in addition to human rights and community coalitions and networks. The CMC implemented eight projects with funding from the International Media Support Foundation (IMS), UN-WOMEN, and the International Media Support Foundation. Terre des Zoom - Switzerland TDH, the German Heinrich Böll Foundation, CARE International in Palestine, CCFD TERRE SOLIDIARE Foundation, and the European Union through a third-party partnership with the Applied Research Institute - ARIJ, in addition to an initiative funded by EMBARK.

CMC also concluded a cooperation agreement with the Ministry of Education, and another with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees - UNRWA, in addition to signing 7 memorandums of understanding with 7 operating civil institutions from all governorates of the Gaza Strip, as well as strengthening relations with universities, academics, various media, and media professionals, in addition to the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, and all actors in society.

Through these partnerships, the CMC was able to prepare 6 printed publications during the past year, including the study “Survey of Baseline Gaps Related to Social-Based Violence in the Gaza Strip,” a research study on “Needs of Academies in the Gaza Strip,” and a report entitled “Monitoring Violations: The right to water and sanitation and its connection to human rights in the areas of the Gaza Strip”, and a fact sheet entitled “Water Desalination in the Gaza Strip between Reality and Hope”, and an introductory brochure on “Gender-Based Violence”, and another on “The Application of Our Spaces”. 

Over the past year, CMC has worked to empower and build the skills of more than 150 young people, activists, media professionals, and lawyers in the fields of human and women’s rights, combating gender-based violence, digital security, protection from cybercrime, and design and management. Pressure and advocacy campaigns, digital content, even theatrical puppets have all contributed to raising awareness about the topics and skills the empowerment and capacity building program provide.

The Community Media Center launched 6 pressure and advocacy campaigns, through the #Protect_Your_Data_and_Live_Your_Life campaign, which it launched for the third year in a row with the aim of raising awareness about cyber violence and the safe use of the internet, the #Protection_Right campaign to spread the culture of reducing domestic violence, and another campaign to demand the adoption of a law to protect the family from violence and raise awareness about it. In addition to the #RespectHer campaign to advocate for women’s rights in academic institutions, CMC also participated in the global 16 Day campaign through two digital campaigns on combating gender discrimination and gender-based violence. During these campaigns, it produced dozens of digital and traditional media materials and implemented a series of listening sessions with decision makers, and a number of dialogue sessions with lawyers and media professionals, and other various activities.

In addition to the above, the CMC has reached more than 11,000 beneficiaries on the ground through education and awareness workshops, film screenings, theatrical performances, photo exhibitions, and other activities, and digitally reached about 1,800,000 people.

In addition, 756 children learned about women’s rights and the concepts of equality and non-discrimination between the sexes. They participated in the performances of the play “Kalam Reham.” At the puppet-making training camp under the supervision and follow-up of the CMC team, the center implemented a series of film screenings on the rights of women and youth in the governorates of the Gaza Strip, and organized two photo exhibitions that reflect the reality and roles of Palestinian women.

The achievements of the Community Media Center during 2022 extended to the launch of the “Masahatuna” application, which is a mobile application that supports and facilitates the access of women and girls who are subjected to domestic violence to the multisectoral services provided by the institutions operating in the Gaza Strip. The application reached 792 users in less than 10 months.

The Community Media Center received media coverage from Reuters, France 24, Anatolia, DW, Sky News Arabia TV, TRT Arabic, Arab TV, Al-Ghad TV, and other regional and local media sources. The Center’s team also organized and participated in a number of international, regional and local conferences, workshops and study days.

This work is a continuation and accumulation of the work of the Community Media Center for more than 15 years in order to develop the role of the media in dealing with societal issues and to promote the values of democracy, equality and a culture of human rights, with a focus on women and youth issues and highlighting them through various medias within the human rights-based approach.

Photo library of the center’s activities: https://cmcgaza.ps/ar/?cat=64 

https://cmcgaza.ps/ar/?p=9653