LALIT launches Youtube Election Video Clip Series
02.10.2014
At LALIT’s Press Conference held on 1 October, leading member Rajni Lallah, announced the launch on that very day of the 10 first LALIT video clips in the run-up to the General Elections. She said that LALIT had already experimented with this new medium, which catered to people who use audio and video media. On our campaign against the biometric ID Cards for example, we had a short clip that had had some 17,000 views. She said this new technology represents a potential freeing up of political space. Parties like LALIT have at least some independence from the mainstream media, like the heavily regime controlled MBC TV, in running an electoral campaign.
The clips, which she showed snippets of projected on to a white wall, making the Press Conference itself, a multi-media event, were of 3 types. The first, which she showed samples of, were of someone speaking on a single topic of political interest: the stakes in the coming election, the Second Republic proposed by the PT-MMM alliance, the importance of the mother tongue, housing, what it is like to visit Palestine under military occupation, how the right to recall MPs would deepen democracy, amongst others. Some 8 different members contributed to animating these clips. The second type of clip are panel discussions or mini-interviews of members by a member, which some 15 members have already had recorded. Here the subjects range from democratizing the MBC to “why I am in LALIT”. The third type, of which we have already recorded two, are in-depth talks, she said. As the campaign proceeds, we will see how we can respond in an on-going way.
This forms part of our over-all campaign, not replacing so much as enriching, our traditional campaign methods.
She said that people had volunteered to do the technical work that made these clips possible. Filming and editing takes a great deal of preparation, work and imagination, she said, as people in the Press are most likely more aware than other people.
Other LALIT members present for LALIT were Rada Kistnasamy, Roland Boussac, Ram Seebogin, Laval Yves, Kisna Kistnasamy, Anne-Marie Joly, Shabeela Kalla, Lindsey Collen, Martine Mavisa. Alain Ah-Vee is in the Seychelles for a conference on the mother tongue. Press present included MBC TV, Radio-Plus, Top-FM, ION News, 24 Heures Info, Le Mauricien, Le Defi.
