Access to official information and interlocutors, especially from the sphere of political life, as well as the safety of male and female journalists present challenges in the work, which were discussed the most by female journalists from Kosovo at the two-day conference in Budva.

During the conference, twenty-one female journalists harmonized/agreed the text of a joint declaration of Kosovo women journalists for which in the coming period they will seek broader support from their female colleagues. The text of the Declaration will soon be presented, and it will propose a series of measures for the improvement of the status of women in the media in Kosovo.

A conference of the Centre for Community Development and KoSSev, organized with the support of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), was preceded by a survey that was performed over a period of several months, which encompassed the interviews with sixteen women reporters that report in different languages in Kosovo, based on which a draft of the Declaration was prepared.

Ivana Vanovac, journalist of Radio Kosovska Mitrovica opined, inter alia, that it took some time to harmonize the text of the Declaration, “but in any case, everything that it contains is something that every journalist, regardless of their gender and ethnic affiliation should sign because it is extremely professional and ethical”. Anđelka Cup, editor of portal Gracanicaonline.info, opined that the conference was “a very good start that gives great chances to expand the initiative, to include more female colleagues, and why not, to ask for support from male colleagues”.

She also said that the Declaration is a good foundation for them to build on and expand it.

Rabisha Muhaxhiri, editor from RTK for community programs, said she was glad to be a part of a group of women journalists and editors who worked on the Declaration and expressed hope that other male and female journalists would recognize this as something positive.

“I think this declaration is very useful, and I hope that other media workers will also agree with what we will propose to them and will join this kind of our campaign – so that with our joint forces, common energy and ideas, we will in fact encourage young journalists to build their career on courage, not to be ashamed of showing what they really know, and to simply always express their stance” said journalist Violeta Oroshi, who opined that this conference was a contribution to the strengthening of women journalists in the media in Kosovo.

One of the youngest participants, BIRN journalist Doruntina Baliu said that they have invested an intensive amount of work in the development of this document, but that it was an “inspiring experience”.

She opined that the initiative to gather journalists from “different ethnic groups, who report in different languages, work in different media, for different amount of time/years” has helped them to learn more about each other, but also from each other.