Indonesian Youth Report for Local Radio

By Brian Hanley

Youth practice radio voicing techniques in a studio

Search for Common Ground Indonesia, in collaboration with the World Bank, recently launched a second run of its youth radio broadcast, Geunderang Damee (“The Drums of Peace”). 

The program kicked off with a week-long training for its 34 youth reporters and presenters from all over the Aceh region who converged at  capital, Banda Aceh.  There, participants discussed the role of the media in conflict, shared interviewing tips and strategies and took their voice recorders into the field for some real-world experience. 

Many had previously been involved with SFCG’s Aceh Youth Radio Program and were eager to reunite for a week of collective brainstorming and discussion.    

Youth participate in a group brainstorming session

Training sessions were led by veteran journalists who discussed both the challenges of working in radio as well as the theoretical framework of peacebuilding media.  Participants talked about the Common Ground approach to radio, exploring the use of talkshows and youth-produced journalism as along with the role of peacebuilders in transforming conflict.

Youth presenters practiced their interviewing skills through role-play; while reporters hit the streets to interview passersby for Geunderang Damee’s first episode.  The show, which focused on the fourth anniversary of the Memorandum of Understanding, which ended Aceh’s 30-year insurgency, had aired by the end of the week. 

Participants celebrated with a trip to a local beach and a group dinner closed out the week’s activities. 

Since returning to their home towns, the Aceh Youth Radio Program’s reporters and presenters have contributed to the production of each episode of Geunderang Damee. 

Youth presenters in Banda Aceh

The reporters’ work has ranged from personal radio diaries to interviews with government officials, delving into topics like Shari’a law and the Indonesian president’s much-anticipated visit to the region. 

Geunderang Damee currently airs on twelve commercial and ten community radio stations in Aceh.  In the coming weeks, focus group discussions throughout the province will help evaluate the project’s effect, while a youth conference this fall will bring participants back together for further discussion and reflection.