Journalists from across Bosnia and Herzegovina gathered in Neum on 15-16 May to strengthen their role in combating gender-based violence against female journalists, particularly online abuse that threatens both individual safety and media freedom.

The two-day training brought together 24 media professionals to explore the impact of gender-based violence on women in journalism and its wider implications for freedom of expression. Through analysis of the local context and real-life cases, participants discussed issues such as the forms of violence most commonly faced by female journalists in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the reasons behind low reporting rates, and the steps needed from media community, civil society, and institutions to tackle the issue.

Kristina Ljevak Bajramović, a journalist and one of the trainers, called for stronger engagement from within the media community. “We cannot talk about combating gender-based violence against female journalists unless we actively advocate for a balanced representation of women in the media, especially when it comes to the presence of professional and expert women in media content, and the responsibility of editorial boards to actively include women in leading positions in the creation of media content.”

Participants discussed key standards and tools of the Council of Europe, including the Istanbul Convention, relevant case law of the European Court of Human Rights, Recommendation CM/Rec(2016)4 of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on the protection of journalism and the safety of journalists and other media actors, as well as Recommendation CM/Rec(2019)1 on preventing and combating sexism. Reporting violence against journalists is an important first step in securing institutional protection for journalists. In this context, the cooperation between the media community and representatives of prosecutors' offices and the police was emphasized.

“Women journalists are often targeted with violence both because of their profession and their gender,” said Joško Mandić, Expert Advisor with the Agency for Gender Equality of Bosnia and Herzegovina, during a recent expert training session for designated prosecutors and police officers intended to strengthen their capacities to tackle violence against women journalists. This session, supported by the Council of Europe, emphasized the need for a multisectoral approach to addressing violence against women in the media.

The report by GREVIO, the key body tasked with overseeing the implementation of the Istanbul Convention, calls for legislative reforms in Bosnia and Herzegovina, improved institutional coordination, and better support systems for people facing multilayered discrimination, including women journalists.

The action “Protecting freedom of expression and of the media in Bosnia and Herzegovina (PROFREX)”, within which the training was organised, is implemented by the Council of Europe as part of the joint European Union and the Council of Europe programme “Horizontal Facility for the Western Balkans and Türkiye”. The training was organised in synergy with the Council of Europe's project “Combating digital and sexual violence against women in Bosnia and Herzegovina II,“ implemented under the Council of Europe’s Action Plan for Bosnia and Herzegovina 2022-2025.