POKHARA, OCT 21

As the battle to outfox electoral opponents has raged on across the country, experts have called on journalists to counter misinformation and hate speech to ensure free and fair polls.

"Media persons have a vital role to play to ensure free and fair elections as they are responsible for facilitating free flow of information to help people make informed choices about which party and leader to vote for," said Chairperson of Media Action Nepal Laxman Datt Pant speaking at a workshop in Pokhara today.

The event on fair media coverage was organized by Media Action Nepal with support from Canada Fund for Local Initiatives.

He said that journalists must be vigilant as political parties and leaders are trying to influence them in their favour to have an advantage over opponents.

Speaking on the occasion, Chairperson of the Kaski chapter of Federation of Nepali Journalists Bimala Bhandari urged journalists to meet public expectations during the elections through fair reporting and practice objective, impartial and balanced journalism every day.

Secretary of Media Action Nepal, Ganesh Ghimire said, "Journalists must remind the government of its obligations to uphold human rights protected by Nepal's constitution as well as those provisions set out in the international human rights treaties."

At the event, human rights expert SB Chhetri shared how media persons can contribute to ending disinformation and hate speech in a world dominated by social media.

Rina Thapa, a Pokhara-based journalist and one of the participants of the workshop, said she will be working on writing more stories of deprived communities to highlight their voices and promote participation in the upcoming federal and provincial elections.

The workshop covered topics such as professional standards and code of conduct for journalists, media approach to human rights, countering hate speech, and promoting inclusive news content.

A total of 175 journalists, half of them women, have benefited from the workshop held by Media Action Nepal and with CFLI's funding in the headquarters of all seven provinces.