BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 11. Decolonization is not only a constitutional process, but it is also a process of communication, former government advisor and an active member of civil society in Sint Maarten, Alston Lourens said, Trend's correspondent reports from the event.
Lourens made the remark at an international conference on “Media and Decolonization: Rising Voices, Amplifying Narratives” in Baku.
“If colonialism was sustained through certain narratives, then decolonization must also reclaim the right to shape its own narrative. In many Caribbean countries, national broadcasting — the existence of a state-run television station — has gradually become a thing of the past,” he said.
According to him, news is increasingly produced by private companies operating in a commercial market.
“Small islands often depend on media content produced outside their territories. In other regions, journalism is supported by government subsidies. Each of these models has its advantages, but each also influences which topics receive sustained attention,” Lawrence noted.
He emphasized that constitutional development, self-determination, and decolonization rarely become commercially attractive topics.
“Far more often, movements that advocate these ideas are portrayed as destructive, unrealistic, problematic, and sometimes even extremist, rather than being viewed as legitimate participants in democratic discourse,” Alston Lourens said.
Meanwhile, an international conference organized by BIG on the theme “Media and Decolonization: Rising Voices, Amplifying Narratives” has begun in Baku.
The conference is the first platform of its kind organized in Azerbaijan with the participation of media representatives from former colonial territories.
The conference brings together leaders and representatives of media organizations from former and current colonial territories, journalists, political commentators, representatives of diaspora organizations, experts in media and communications, representatives of civil society institutions, researchers, diplomats, government officials, and representatives of local media.
