Conferences in Islamabad
Media and Conflict
Rune Ottosen and Elisabeth Eide at Bahria University
Rune Ottosen and Elisabeth Eide have lectured and participated in the International Conference on Media and Conflict (ICMC), invited by the Pakistan Peace Collective, held at Bahria University in Islamabad. The two day conference 26 and 27 February was inaugurated by the President of Pakistan, Dr. Arif ur Rehman Alvi, and three other federal ministers also visited the conference, which could not have been more timely, considering the tense situation between Pakistan and neighbouring India. Several prominent scholars and journalists spoke on the occasion, among them Mr. Zafar Abbas, editor of Dawn newspaper, reporter Hamid Mir (Geo News), and Ms. Quatrina Hosein (PPC collective). Mr. Iqbal Lala from Mardan, father of journalism student Mashal Khan at Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, who was brutally murdered on 13 April 2017 after fake allegations of posting blasphemous content online, received a particularly warm welcome by the audience. Among the themes were Peace journalism; Media coverage of terrorist attacks; Media perspectives on religious violence; Minority, violence and media; Psychological effects of conflict reporting; Social media and hate speech; Fake news and hybrid warfare. The conference was covered by several media, including PTV.
AMCAP conference
Participants at the AMCAP conference
The Association of Media And Communication Academics and Professionals (AMCAP) held its fourth conference in Islamabad on 28 February. Professors Rune Ottosen and Elisabeth Eide were invited as keynote speakers at this occasion, hosted by SZABIST University in Islamabad. The participants were warmly welcomed by Head of Campus Dr. Khusro Pervaiz Khan and by Begum Shahnaz Wazir Ali, President of Szabist University and former Minister of State of Education. Appr. 50 research papers were presented and commented by a wide range of academics as well as students. Ottosen lectured about the need for education in war and peace journalism, while Eide emphasized the need to take education in environment and climate change journalism seriously. The conference thanked Dr. Bushra Rehman, President of AMCAP, and Vice President Abida Ashraf for their professional and continuous efforts promoting the association and making the conference a success.
Last week, writers from all over Norway gathered in Oslo. They share being persecuted in their own countries, and have found a safe place in one of Norway’s cities of refuge, through ICORN. Some of them are journalists, too, and JMIC had a small workshop with ten writers-journalists discussing experiences, job opportunities and journalism in Norway. 
people fleeing is the cell phone. It is a friend who provides many kinds of services during long and dangerous journeys from war and persecution. In these stories, the cell phone forms the core, woven into the larger stories of the lives of the eighteen interviewed. The book shows how important modern technology can be in precarious situations in which people are at the mercy of traffickers, police, border guards and changing weather conditions. Through this, stories about the journey and life in “no man’s land” between absolute insecurity and relative safety, are told. Two of the authors look back on their flight ten years ago when technology played a somewhat smaller role, yet the situations that arose were equally harsh.