WASBO Bemoans Women Athletes Media Negligence
Women and Sport Botswana (WASBO) has expressed concern that women athletes continue to be sidelined by the media.
Speaking to Sport Monitor, WASBO acting secretary general, Keenese Katisenge said coverage of women athletes was inadequate, and that is one of the reasons that they organised a workshop for the media recently. She said the media gives more attention to the other side while neglecting women hence she called for balanced coverage.
“For the longest period of time, women athletes have been marginalised when it came to coverage and the effects of the marginalisation are what we are experiencing now,” she said.
Katisenge also said negligence has made it necessary for WASBO to host the workshop. She said they wanted to openly discuss issues around gender sensitive reporting and propose solutions for improvement so that women athletes could also receive regular coverage. That is also important for their motivation and encouragement, she emphasised.
“If more get coverage without stereotypes, more women athletes would avail themselves for interviews without fear,” she added.
When asked how WASBO assisted women athletes during the COVID-19 pandemic, Katisenge said the situation has affected livelihoods and mental health mostly.
“Realizing that we needed expertise in these areas, we established working relationships with different organisations in order to tap into their experiences and resources. For instance, we have established a working relationship with Stepping Stones International for mentorship of our athletes,” Katisenge said.
Additionally, WASBO has also partnered with Mentorship for Excellence International for mentorship of athletes with disability. She said the partnership came about after reports indicated that marginalised groups like people with disability have been affected more by the pandemic.
“We also run a campaign called Its On Us Campaign which calls for protection of women and girls against sexual harassment. When reports for Gender Based Violance (GBV) were reported to be increasing during the lockdown and now, we are working on a sexual harassment policy,” she said.
Meanwhile, Katisenge disclosed that WASBO is preparing for an online Women and Sport Pitso.
“The Pitso is an important platform on the WASBO calendar for engagement on women and sport issues as resolutions for a conducive environment for preparation of women and girls in sport,” she said.