EUAM assists judges-speakers in building effective communication with the media
June 01, 2016
In May, the European Union Advisory Mission (EUAM) Ukraine co-organised a series of seminar-trainings for Ukrainian judges-speakers together with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Council of Judges . Four sessions, attended by newly appointed judges-speakers, were held in Dnipro, Kherson, Mykolaiv and Zaporizhzhya.
As Oleksandr Sasevych, member of the Council of Judges, explained: “The aim of the recently introduced judge-speaker position is to help opening communication lines between the courts and the community. We want to enhance society’s trust into the judicial system and increase public understanding of how it works.”
A round-table discussion introduced each session, gathering representatives of media and civil society, together with the judges and the organisers. Topics included the importance of the principles of efficiency and access to justice in building an independent and fair judicial system.
The sessions started with an appraisal of the duties of a judge-speaker, the types and management of crisis situations, the country’s media landscape and the principles for maintaining good media relations.
The second part of each session included intense simulated media interviews, which were recorded to allow participants to develop a critical view of their own clarity and confidence in dealing with the media.
