52 In Their Capacity as Human Rights Defenders: Women 5.4 Recommendations to CSOs § Continue to monitor and document the challenges faced by women HRDs in the private and public spheres and provide recommendations for reform and other action points to influence positive change. § Continue to provide the necessary safety nets – legal, psychosocial - and welfare support to women HRDs in order to allow them to continue their critical work. § Carry out comprehensive awareness programmes within the broader civil society, and within CSOs themselves, to ensure that women HRDs within these institutions are accorded the respect and non-discriminatory treatment they deserve as equal partners in the struggle for democracy, rule of law and development. § Develop programmes to address patriarchal stereotypes of women HRDs, particularly at the community level, in order to contribute to changing attitudes and practices at all levels of society. 5.5 Recommendations to the media § The Voluntary Media Council of Zimbabwe must act decisively against journalists and media houses publishing articles that qualify as hate speech against women HRDs, both public and private media and whether print or electronic. § Editorial policy at media houses should ensure that gender is mainstreamed and their policy and content specifically addresses the challenges, successes and programmes of women HRDs, who have been much marginalised in such coverage. § There is a need to distill the patriarchal ideologies that result in negative articles being written about women HRDs who challenge their prescribed roles. In this regard, the media must ensure their capacity building initiatives address such issues and improve understanding and linkages with women HRDs and those who work on human rights and women’s rights issues.