No to hatespeech and violence!
Greetings from beautiful Bamenda City!
Yesterday was a fantastic day that began with me freshening up and heading out to a peacebuilding workshop organized by ISTP and the Civil Peace Service.
The workshop's theme was "Fighting Hate Speech and Violence in the Community."
It was a great experience. I arrived at the venue at 7:45 am and assisted the coordinating team in setting up the hall. By 8:30 am, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast. I opted for puff-puff, beans, and a cup of lemongrass tea.
The program kicked off at 9:40 am with an opening speech by the Education Secretary for Basic Education, followed by a representative of the Chairperson of the CBC Health Services. Afterward, the main facilitator for the workshop was introduced.
This workshop aims to combat hate speech and violence in the community through the use of radio dramas.
The facilitator provided a brief history and introduction to radio drama, then discussed its benefits. One point that caught my attention was that audio dramas have three key pillars:
- Dialogue: This conveys the message.
- Music: This introduces plays, injects emotions, and concludes them.
- Sound Effects: These create auditory cues (e.g., chirping birds for morning).
Around two hours into the program, we delved into the elements of radio drama: characters, roles, voice, sound, time, action, place, focus, and suspense. I plan to write a separate piece elaborating on these elements later.
We examined each element in detail, with sample radio dramas being played. Participants identified the plays' strengths and weaknesses, making for an engaging and informative session.
The facilitator then led us through a scriptwriting lesson, which was truly thought-provoking. We learned how to write scripts, and the hall, filled with about 40 participants, was divided into three groups. Each group was tasked with creating sub-themes and a strong script for a radio play addressing hate speech and violence in society.
This exercise took about three hours, marking the end of day one. By 3 pm, each group submitted their scripts to the facilitators for review overnight. After lunch, we all headed home. Today, we'll rehearse the scripts and then proceed to record these various plays.
The recording session is always the most active and interesting part; the drama is both entertaining and demanding. I'm looking forward to it and contributing further to create a compelling radio play that resonates with many, addressing hate speech and promoting peace in our community.
See you soon ✌️