Note to Correspondents

South African Story ‘Corrective Rape’ to Receive Top Television Award, 12 April,

 

at United Nations Public Information Department- New York Festivals Event

 

International television programming and films focusing on issues of importance to the United Nations will be honoured on Tuesday, 12 April, at the New York Festivals Television and Film Awards Gala at the NAB Show in Las Vegas.  Awards will be presented to broadcasting companies from Australia, Germany and the United States.

The Gold Award will be presented to ESPN ( United States) for the E:60 production, “Corrective Rape”.   South Africa has the highest reported rate of rape worldwide, and it has been estimated that half of all South African women will be raped during their lifetime.  So-called “corrective rape” — men raping gay women in order to “cure” them of their lesbianism — is the latest phenomenon in a country plagued by sexual violence and homophobia.

The Silver Award goes to ABC (Australia) for the Foreign Correspondent show, “Standing on the Sky”, which follows the plight of several wounded and disabled civilians in Afghanistan, who have been denied health care, dignity and opportunity because of years of war and instability.  The story generated financial and medical assistance and increased awareness of the discrimination and neglect faced by persons with disabilities.

The Bronze Award goes to NDR ( Germany) for the Dokumentation und Reportage production, “The Dark Side of Chocolate”.   Europe consumes half of all chocolate worldwide — 1.5 million tons per year, or 15 billion chocolate bars.  The dark side of this beloved treat is that it may be supporting the practice of child labour and child trafficking in African cocoa-producing countries.

Chief of Advocacy and Special Events, United Nations Department of Public Information, Juan Carlos Brandt, said, “Film and television industries around the world have the potential to reach almost every single person on the planet.  The effect of these images and sounds on us is immeasurable, so it is gratifying to see honours awarded to stories exposing inhumane and criminal behaviour such as rape, violent intolerance, the plight of the disabled and the exploitation of children.  When horrors are exposed, possibilities for justice grow stronger.  The filmmakers recognized by the New York Festivals are doing more than their part in this effort.”

Jointly sponsored by the United Nations Department of Public Information and the New York Festivals, the awards were established in 1990 to honour television programming that reflects and exemplifies the values, aims and ideals of the United Nations.

International Awards Group has representation in 75 countries and organizes international advertising and programming competitions for the AME Awards for Advertising Marketing Effectiveness; Hive Awards for the Unsung Heroes of the Internet; Midas Awards for Financial Services Communications, The Global Awards for Healthcare Communications and the New York Festivals Awards for Advertising, TV, Film and Radio Programming.  Entries in each of the international competitions are annually judged online by hundreds of professionals in their respective industries.  For more information, visit the website at www.InternationalAwardsGroup.com.

For more information, please contact Carlos Islam, tel.:  212 963 2985, e‑mail:  islamc@un.org; or Daniela Sinobad, tel.:  212 963 3873, e-mail:  sinobad@un.org.

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For information media • not an official record