BIRN Offers Transitional Justice Reporting Training for Journalists

BIRN, in cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme, UNDP, is calling for journalists to apply for a three-day course next month on reporting on transitional justice issues such as war crimes trials.

Journalists from former Yugoslav countries who are interested in transitional justice topics are eligible to apply for the training course, which will be held in the Serbian capital Belgrade from October 14-16.

"Transitional justice issues, war crimes, accountability and justice are still very important and sensitive topics in the Balkans and their journalistic coverage demands objective and fact-based reporting," BIRN said in a statement.

Participants will have the opportunity to learn from experts on transitional justice topics, including journalists, judicial officials, and representatives of government and civil society.

After the training course, they will also be required to pitch an in-depth story on transitional justice in the Balkans.

From the pitches and general assessments at the course, BIRN will select 10 journalists to participate a study visit to The Hague that will be held in November.

The journalists who propose the best stories will receive a grant of 1,000 euros from BIRN to further develop them in cooperation with BIRN's experienced pool of editors.

To apply, journalists should send a CV, letter of motivation, links to or examples of published work, and any other relevant documents to [email protected] with the subject line 'Application - Training for Journalists'.

The deadline for applications is September 25.