Yolanda Veiga, Yolanda Guirado and Emilio Maíllo triumph at the 10th Journalism Awards Against Gender Violence

Journalists Yolanda Veiga, from El Correo, Yolanda Guirado, from COPE Andalucía, and Emilio Maíllo, from the programme ‘Solidarios’ on Canal Sur Televisión, were the winners of the 10th Journalism Awards Against Gender Violence organised by the Aliados por la Integración Foundation.

The awards, each worth €3,000 in cash and a commemorative trophy, recognised the best journalistic work of the year on a subject that generates great concern and social alarm, such as gender violence, in various media categories, including print media, television and radio/podcasts, from among 112 works published in the Spanish media. With this tenth edition, the awards have reached a significant milestone, exceeding 1,300 entries submitted throughout their history, consolidating their position as a benchmark in the recognition of good professional practices that contribute to the defence and dissemination of values against this social scourge.

El Correo, Canal Sur and COPE shone at these 10th Journalism Awards against Gender Violence organised by the Aliados por la Integración Foundation thanks to the work carried out by Yolanda Veiga, Emilio Maíllo and Yolanda Guirado.

The awards ceremony took place at the Madrid Press Association (APM), with Eduardo Rodríguez, Director of Communication at the Aliados por la Integración Foundation, as master of ceremonies.

Eduardo Rodríguez himself recalled that it has been ten years since the awards were first presented and ‘the anniversary allows us to remember very well’ what these awards are for. The Aliados Foundation worked in the essential area of employment in relation to gender violence, as ‘it is the key to independence and freedom to break the chains of aggressors’. However, they felt that they could not stop there, sensing a responsibility to go further, raising awareness through allies to transform the collective consciousness, and ‘that is where the media are our great allies,’ which is how these awards came about, explained Eduardo Rodríguez. The media focus on issues that others ignore, shying away from sensationalism.

Over the last ten years, more than 1,300 entries have been received with the message of saying ‘enough’ to gender-based violence. The Director of Communication at the Aliados Foundation also wanted to recognise the importance of the jury's high standards and ethics, which have raised the value and prestige of these awards.

The jury included distinguished figures such as Almudena Fontecha, president of the Executive Committee of Aliados por la Integración; Miguel Ángel Noceda, president of the Federation of Press Associations of Spain (FAPE); Alfonso Nasarre, director of Onda Madrid; Pilar Álvarez, head of Última Hora at El País; Óscar Vázquez, deputy director of Antena 3 Noticias; Raquel Benito, editor-in-chief of El Confidencial; Alfonso Rodríguez, deputy director of ABC; Myriam Noblejas, journalist specialising in gender violence and assistant to the Director General of Communication at Madrid City Council; and Javier Fernández Arribas, director of Atalayar and contributor to various media outlets.

Journalists Yolanda Veiga, from El Correo, Yolanda Guirado, from COPE Andalucía, and Emilio Maíllo, from the programme ‘Solidarios’ on Canal Sur Televisión, were the main protagonists. However, the jury also decided to award a Special Mention in the Television category to journalist Vicente Ibáñez from Antena 3.

The jury decided to award this Special Mention in the Television category to journalist Vicente Ibáñez, from Antena 3, for ‘Un día en los Juzgados de Violencia de Género’ (A Day in the Gender Violence Courts). This work summarises in just two minutes a necessary and educational perspective on the functioning of justice, showing the journey that victims go through from the moment they file a complaint and highlighting the work of professionals working on the front line of the justice system.

Vicente Ibáñez spoke of the scourge of physical and psychological violence that affects women and children, leaving ‘serious consequences,’ and dedicated the award to his two mothers, his biological mother and his political mother, who overcame their respective problems to ‘take care of their children, sending a message that it is possible to escape.’

In the Television category, the award went to Emilio Maíllo for ‘Esclavas del siglo XXI’ (Slaves of the 21st Century), a report broadcast on Canal Sur Televisión's ‘Solidarios’ programme. The work forcefully addresses the reality of human trafficking for sexual exploitation. The jury highlighted the report's ability to raise awareness of these women living in conditions of slavery and to expose the dynamics of coercion they suffer, recalling the social responsibility in the face of this violation of human rights. A powerful report that talks about modern slavery to raise awareness of the situation of women who suffer violence in the trafficking market for sexual exploitation, as Eduardo Rodríguez recalled.

Emilio Maíllo recalled that the programme ‘Solidarios’ has been on the air for 26 years ‘denouncing and making journalism a tool for social transformation’, emphasising that ‘these awards help us to continue our work’.

In the Radio/Podcast category, the award went to Yolanda Guirado, from COPE Andalucía, for her report ‘Un primer techo para mujeres valientes’ (A first roof for brave women). The radio report delves into the vital importance of shelters as a first step towards freedom and safety. The jury recognised that Guirado has managed to capture the essence of these spaces, which not only offer refuge, but also a starting point for the comprehensive recovery of women who manage to break the cycle of violence.

Jacobo Menéndez, director of communications at COPE, accepted the award on behalf of Yolanda Guirado. Jacobo Menéndez himself highlighted the importance of explaining what happens to a woman who wants to leave abuse behind and stressed that ‘radio does what it does best: listen and accompany’.

In the Print Media category, the jury awarded the prize to journalist Yolanda Veiga for her work ‘Sexual abuse of minors in care: how the system that should protect them has failed’, published in the newspaper El Correo. The report stands out for its courageous investigation into the cracks in the protection system, focusing on the vulnerability of minors who, already damaged by their families of origin, end up being victims of exploitation networks. Veiga starkly conveys how the lack of resources and emotional deprivation in overcrowded centres push these young people towards so-called ‘lover boys’ or sexual predators. The jury appreciated how the text not only denounces the failures of the system, but also proposes urgent solutions, emphasising the need to promote professionalised foster care over the residential model.

As Eduardo Rodríguez pointed out, this is a ‘courageous report’ that breaks the taboo on the failures of care centres for children in care, which push girls into exploitation networks. These children are hungry for food and affection, and sexual predators take advantage of this with luxurious gifts that lure them into this type of business. Children who, in this case, were looking for care from those who end up hurting them.

Yolanda Veiga herself expressed her gratitude for the ‘personal recognition and to the journalists from the provincial media’, who try to work with the same rigour as the larger media outlets. The journalist spoke of recognising the cracks and failures of a national child protection system through the most dramatic consequence, which is sexual abuse. These cases are not isolated, as Yolanda Veiga spoke of the existence of ‘genuine organised mafias that take advantage of the vulnerability of children, especially girls’. 

In many cases, the victims did not recognise themselves as such, they did not recognise that they were suffering abuse and violence, explained Yolanda Veiga. The journalist pointed out that ‘we must not lose our ability to be sensitive to difficult cases of gender violence that make the work of organisations such as the Aliados Foundation necessary’.

The awards ceremony was closed by Almudena Fontecha, president of the Aliados Foundation, who explained that ‘the awards are possible thanks to the combined efforts of many people’. ‘These awards recognise the value of journalism that works with rigour, data and truthful treatment of the news,’ said Almudena Fontecha, who spoke of ‘highlighting the role of informing and questioning reality’, rejecting mantras that are not true, such as the high percentage of false reports, which is actually very low. In this case, she recognised the role of the latest award winners as ‘new allies in the fight against gender violence,’ after ten years of presenting these awards. ‘Gender violence is the most extreme form of inequality in our society, and the media has a very important role to play in raising awareness,’ explained the president of the Aliados por la Integración Foundation.

The awards ceremony served as a prelude to the celebration of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and Girls on 25 November, as Almudena Fontecha recalled, rejecting the denial of gender-based violence and emphasising that gender-based violence is mainly against women, but that the fight against gender violence concerns everyone, men and women, and is not directed against men. One in four young people reject the existence of gender violence and half of all cases of gender violence involve young people, the president of the Aliados Foundation also explained. ‘As long as women continue to be murdered, we will continue to be here, and hopefully these awards will disappear,’ said Almudena Fontecha, who stressed that ‘we need to move towards a more aware society, and the media plays an important role’ in this mission.