We welcome this initiative, as we are committed to the promotion of women in decision- making in community radios and in our organization. The Women's International Network of AMARC (AMARC-WIN) is a large assembly of women communicators working to ensure women's right to communicate through and within the community radio movement. WIN works for women's right to communicate as a basic human right expressed through community radio. It supports women's empowerment, gender equity, and a general improvement in the condition and position of women world-wide. It promotes women's access to all levels of community radio, including decision-making. WIN also supports women's efforts to express themselves within and beyond their communities, by providing training programmes and production exchanges at the international and local level. The Women’s Network aims to change negative images of both women and men in the media and to challenge stereotypes being reproduced by media all around the world. WIN subscribes to the principles of the Beijing Platform for Action.

AMARC is non-governmental organization with consultative status at UNESCO and ECOSOC. It has nearly 3000 members and associates in more than 160 countries involved in the development of community radios for the democratization of information and communications. AMARC was created in August 1983, when 600 radio producers from 36 countries gathered in Montreal, Canada, during the International Year of Communications promoted by the United Nations."

Such an initiative helps draw attention to:

1. The unequal opportunities that exist for men and women journalists in newsrooms;
2. The insufficient coverage of news concerning and including women and their voices;
3. The obstacles that continue to hamper 1) women journalists’ equal participation in the newsroom and 2) the publication of issues of concern to women;
4. The link between the presence of women journalists in decision-making positions and a greater visibility of women in news content;
5. The significant impact that the publication of news relative to women has on decisions at the political level.

AFJ recently published ‘Dites-le avec des femmes’ (Say It with Women), a book containing four reports on the status of women in news and newsrooms. AFJ awards an annual Documentary Prize at the Creteil Women’s Film Festival, and in 2001 AFJ will launch a Prize and Grant for Women Photojournalists."

"The Forum for Women in Democracy, whose goal is to achieve gender equality in decision-making, supports UNESCO’s initiative. Women have shown their capability of managing multiple roles and being exemplary leaders, proving that they can be excellent editors. We support you."

"This is a splendid initiative. We do need more women in powerful positions in the media. Women often see the world through different eyes, so a male-run media misses out on the experience of half of society."