Jenny Norton is a Caucasus Programme Associate and also works as a journalist with the BBC World Service.

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“We only ever sit down and talk to each other when you are here,” says an Abkhaz journalist at the end of a workshop on media issues. “It’s been so useful.”

His comment sums up one of the most important and yet unacknowledged aspects of peacebuilding: the efforts that go into bringing people together and keeping conversations alive – sometimes at the most difficult of times – both within individual societies and across the conflict divide.

Talking journalism and peace in Abkhazia

The media workshop, which took place on a rainy Sunday morning in the Abkhaz capital Sukhum/i, brought together 14 local radio, television and newspaper reporters and editors.

It was the last in a series of meetings in July organised by Conciliation Resources and involving a wide range of Georgians and Abkhaz, from politicians and diplomats to civil society activists and youth groups working to bring peace to the region.

From social media to local media

For Abkhaz journalists the workshop was a chance to discuss the current state of the local media, to brainstorm new ideas and also to hear from Conciliation Resources how colleagues in other parts of the world are using the media – especially social media sites – to highlight peacebuilding efforts in various troublespots.

Many of the problems raised during the journalists’ meeting chimed with concerns raised in meetings we’d had with journalists in the Georgian capital Tbilisi. And no doubt they would ring bells for independent reporters in conflict zones across the world.

Political pressures, taboo issues, difficulties getting access to information, financial constraints and competition from bigger, better funded official or international news outlets.

“One Russian national newspaper produces a special edition for Abkhazia,” one editor explained. “It’s in colour, it’s glossy and it’s free. How can we compete with that?”

Making connections and highlighting good practice

Despite the challenges, many of the workshop participants said how proud they were of the local media in Abkhazia.

“We have several daily newspapers, two independent weeklies, a couple of local radio stations and two nationwide television channels,” said one veteran of the Abkhaz media scene. ”If you compare that to the situation in a similar sized city in the Caucasus, then we’re way ahead.”

But they also voiced deep concerns about how to uphold standards and pass them on to the next generation of journalists.

It wasn’t just about funding and training they said, it was also about the chance to work with and learn from colleagues across the entire South Caucasus region.

There was much interest in Conciliation Resources’ Dialogue through Film project which brings together young film-makers from Azerbaijan and Nagorny Karabakh. The chance to hear more about the project sparked off ideas for initiatives in the Georgian–Abkhaz context, which Conciliation Resources will be following up with local partners in coming months.

Interested in finding out more about our work in the South Caucasus?