Archive for the 'awards' Category
October 11, 2014
Under provocative title “Can Arabs be Human Rights Defenders?” the on-line newspapers Mada Masr and Jadaliyya published a piece setting out how 3 Arab nominees were suddenly dropped by their nominators in the European Parliament over a few Israeli-bashing tweets that were indeed on the verge of acceptability (even in the context of rough twitter talk) especially when calling for or condoning killing of Zionist civilians.
I referred to the nominations in my post: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2014/09/22/nominees-for-sakharov-prize-2014-announced/.
I consider the post’s title provocative (or perhaps ironic) as even a cursory glance of human rights documentation – including this blog – shows that there are hundreds of human rights defenders in the Arab world whose credentials are not disputed or totally defensible.
Please read the whole piece for yourself as this is both a complicated and sensitive matter.
Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Ala Yaacoubi, Alaa Abdel Fattah, Andrei Sakharov, Arab region, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, bloggers, Criticism of the Israeli government, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah, EP, European Parliament, Freedom of speech, hate speech, human rights award, Human Rights Defenders, Jadaliyya, Mada Masr, members of the european parliament, Mouad Belghouate, Nomination, non-violence, Sakharov Prize, twitter
October 11, 2014
More on awards: The winner of the 2014 Raw in War Anna Politkovskaya award is Kurdish Yazidi member of Iraq parliament Vian Dakhil .On Monday 6 October, RAW in WAR (Reach All Women in WAR) selected Vian Dakhil who has courageously spoken out and campaigned to protect the Yazidi people from the terror of Islamic State. She is the only ethnic Yazidi in the Iraqi Parliament and, despite being injured in a helicopter crash while delivering aid to survivors on Mt Sinjar, she continues to advocate and to mobilize support for her people, for the refugees and for those trapped in towns and villages under the regime of Islamic State. “I make no secret of the fact that I’m proud to be honored with your esteemed award, but the real way to honor someone is by protecting their freedom and rights. It is by bringing our prisoners back,’ said Dakhil in her speech while receiving the award.
Previous women human rights defenders who received this award: Malala Yousafzai 2013, Marie Colvin 2012, Razan Zaitouneh 2011, Dr. Halima Bashir 2010, Leila Alikarami on behalf of the One Million Signatures Campaign for Equality in Iran 2009, Malalai Joya 2008 and Natalia Estemirova 2007. See also: http://www.trueheroesfilms.org/thedigest/awards
via Kurdish Yazidi Woman Wins International Award | BAS NEWS.
Posted in awards, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 1 Comment »
Tags: Anna Politkovskaya, conflict and peace, digest of human rights awards, human rights awards, Iraq, ISIS, islamic fundamentalists, Islamic State, Kurdish cause, Kurdish Yazidi, Malala Yousafzai, RAW in WAR, terrorism, Vian Dakhil, woman human rights defender, women human rights defenders, Yazidi
October 11, 2014
October is awards season, so you should know that the 2014 Andrei Sakharov Freedom Award recognizes 98 political prisoners in Azerbaijan. [Note : there is also the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize – of more info please go to: http://www.trueheroesfilms.org/thedigest/awards]
The Norwegian Helsinki Committee’s Secretary General, Bjørn Engesland, announced the award in Oslo on 6 October, noting the sad fact that Azerbaijan’s political prisoners “are too numerous to all be mentioned here.” The Committee has documented 98 political prisoners, among them 13 journalists and bloggers. In addition, the prisoners include 10 human rights defenders and civil society activists, nine youth activists, a prominent opposition leader, “and many other opposing voices and religious activists.” The Committee noted that Azerbaijan assumed the Presidency of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers this year.“Just weeks after Azerbaijan took over the chairmanship in May 2014, a new wave of detention of activists started. In what appears as a sign of contempt against the Council of Europe institutions, this wave in particular hit human rights defenders who have worked hard with the Council for the recognition and release of Azerbaijani political prisoners.
via Sakharov Prize Goes to Azeri Political Prisoners.
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Tags: Andrei Sakharov Freedom Award, Azerbaijan, Azeri, bloggers, Council of Europe, digest of human rights awards, freedom of expression, Human Rights Defenders, journalists, Norwegian Helsinki Committee, Oslo, political prisoners, Sakharov Prize
October 11, 2014
You will have learned this already from the main news media, but to bee complete in the area of human rights awards: On Friday 10 October the Nobel Peace Prize 2014 was awarded to India‘s Kailash Satyarthi and Pakistan‘s Malala Yousafzai for their struggles against the violations of the rights of children. As the chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said, “Children must go to school, not be financially exploited.”
Malala Yousafzai came to global attention after she was shot in the head by the Taliban — two years ago Thursday — for her efforts to promote education for girls in Pakistan. Since then, after surgery, she has won several high level human rights awards and now the Peace Prize. [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2013/10/10/malala-collects-another-award-sacharov-instead-of-snowden/]
Satyarthi, age 60, has shown great personal courage in heading peaceful demonstrations focusing on the grave exploitation of children for financial gain, the committee said. Satyarthi told reporters that the award was about many more people than him — and that credit should go to all those “sacrificing their time and their lives for the cause of child rights” and fighting child slavery.
The peace aspect of the Prize is double this year: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in awards, human rights, Human Rights Defenders | 2 Comments »
Tags: 2014, awards, digest of human rights awards, hindu, human rights awards, Human Rights Defenders, India, Kailash Satyarthi, Malala Yousafzai, Muslim, Nobel Peace Prize, Pakistan, peace prize, right to education, rights of children, THF
October 10, 2014
The ceremony of the Martin Ennals Award 2014 is over (7 October 2014). It was again very impressive to hear and see 3 courageous Human Rights Defenders being honored. Some 450 people (my estimate) gave standing ovations to the 3 nominees whose work was shown in impressive films produced for the occasion. The film portraits are already available on the website: http://www.martinennalsaward.org where there is also a short summary of the whole evening.
Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders
Especially the film on Chinese HRD Cao Shunli is a masterpiece given that the film makers had almost no images to work with due to the modesty of the human rights defender as well as her untimely death in detention only 2 days after her nomination in March 2014.
The internet has buzzed with congratulations and encouragements to the other two nominees, Adilur from Bangladesh and Alejandra Ancheita from Mexico. The latter became ultimately the Laureate [see https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2014/10/07/breaking-news-alejandra-ancheita-is-the-2014-mea-laureate/#more-5648 ].
One of the nicest surprises was the address by Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at one of his first public appearances outside the UN. 
The High Commissioner gave a moving and almost poetic description of the sorry state of affairs left to human rights defenders to correct: He said inter alia: Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in awards, films, human rights, Human Rights Defenders, MEA, UN | 2 Comments »
Tags: Adilur Rahman Khan, Alejandra Ancheita, awards, Bangladesh, Cao Shunli, China, film, film portraits, Geneva, human rights award, Human Rights Defenders, human rights films, Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders, MEA, MEA ceremony, Mexico, speech, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ville de Geneve, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein
October 7, 2014
The Martin Ennals Foundation just announced in Geneva – during a ceremony broadcast live on the internet – that the MEA Laureate of 2014 is Alejandra Ancheita from Mexico. She was selected by a Jury representing the broad international Human Rights movement (see below).
Alejandra Ancheita is the founding Director of ProDESC. For over 15 years she has worked with migrants, workers, and indigenous communities to protect their land and labour rights vis-a-vis transnational mining and energy companies. These disputes have included violent attacks on those she is trying to protect. She is also one of the pioneers in seeking accountability for transnational companies in Mexican courts when local communities’ rights are not taken into account. In Mexico, there is a clear pattern of attacks, threats, criminalization, and murders of human rights defenders. Ms Ancheita and ProDESC have been subjected to surveillance, a defamation campaign in the national media, and a break in at their offices. Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: Adilur Rahman Khan, Alejandra Ancheita, awards, Bangladesh, Cao Shunli, China, City of Geneva, human rights award, Human Rights Defenders, MEA, MEA final nominee 2014, MEA laureate 2014, Mexico, Micheline Calmy Rey, ProDESC, Sandrine Salerno, woman human rights defender
October 3, 2014
Reminder: Martin Ennals Award 2014 to be announced at Ceremony in Geneva on 18:00, 7 October, at Uni Dufour. Watch live on: www.martinennalsaward.org
for more detail on the nominees: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2014/06/22/announcement-ceremony-of-the-martin-ennals-award-2014-on-7-october/
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Tags: Adilur Rahman Khan, Alejandra Ancheita, awards, Cao Shunli, human rights award, Human Rights Defenders, internet, Martin Ennals Award, MEA, MEA 2014, MEA ceremony, Prince Zeid Raad Zeid al-Hussein, streaming, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein
September 25, 2014
The Russian human rights group Agora, which played a key role in defending one of the jailed members of Pussy Riot, has won Norway’s Rafto Prize for human rights defenders. [An Agora lawyer, Irina Khrunova, helped secure the release of Yekaterina Samutsevich, who was sentenced to two years in jail in 2012 for the feminist group’s “punk prayer” protest against President Vladimir Putin].”The award is a recognition of their relentless and professional work to defend the right to fair trial and other human rights in a Russia where organisations and individuals are subjected to increasing pressure from the country’s authorities” the Bergen-based Rafto Foundation said on Thursday. The Agora Association – a network of 35 lawyers across Russia – was founded by human rights lawyer Pavel Chikov in 2005. It provides legal help to mainly human rights defenders, bloggers and journalists.
The group was forced to turn down $20,000 in prize money, according to the Rafto foundation due to a 2012 law – which Agora has challenged in the courts – that requires organisations with international funding to register as “foreign agents”.
via Russian lawyers win Norwegian rights prize.
for more info on the award: http://www.trueheroesfilms.org/thedigest/award/rafto-prize
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Tags: Agora (NGO), awards, Bergen, foreign agent law, foreign funding, human rights award, Human Rights Defenders, human rights lawyers, Irina Khrunova, Norway, Pavel Chikov, Pussy Riot, Rafto award, Russia
September 25, 2014
Honorary Awards goes to EDWARD SNOWDEN (USA) “for his courage and skill in revealing the unprecedented extent of state surveillance violating basic democratic processes and constitutional rights” and ALAN RUSBRIDGER (UK) “for building a global media organisation dedicated to responsible journalism in the public interest, undaunted by the challenges of exposing corporate and government malpractices”.
Three other Laureates will equally share the cash award of SEK 1.5 million:
ASMA JAHANGIR (Pakistan) “for defending, protecting and promoting human rights in Pakistan and more widely, often in very difficult and complex situations and at great personal risk”.
BASIL FERNANDO/ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION (Hong Kong) “for his tireless and outstanding work to support and document the implementation of human rights in Asia”.
BILL McKIBBEN (USA) “for mobilising growing popular support in the USA and around the world for strong action to counter the threat of global climate change”.
The Foundation will also fund legal support for Edward Snowden.
Ole von Uexkull, Executive Director of the Right Livelihood Award Foundation, said: “This year’s Right Livelihood Laureates are stemming the tide of the most dangerous global trends. With this year’s Awards, we want to send a message of urgent warning that these trends – illegal mass surveillance of ordinary citizens, the violation of human and civil rights, violent manifestations of religious fundamentalism, and the decline of the planet’s life-supporting systems – are very much upon us already. If they are allowed to continue, and reinforce each other, they have the power to undermine the basis of civilised societies. But the Laureates also demonstrate that the choice is entirely in our hands: by courageous acts of civil disobedience in the public interest, through principled and undeterred journalism, by upholding the rule of law and documenting each violation of it, and by building social movements to resist the destruction of our natural environment, we can turn the tide and build our common future on the principles of freedom, justice, and respect for the Earth.”
The Awards will be presented at a ceremony in the Swedish Parliament on December 1.
http://www.trueheroesfilms.org/thedigest/awards
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Tags: Alan Rusbridger, Asian Human Rights Commission, Asma Jahangir, Basil Fernando, digest of human rights awards, Edward Snowden, human rights awards, Human Rights Defenders, Pakistan, Right Livelihood Award, Sweden, THF
September 24, 2014
The Sergio Vieira de Mello Foundation was created in 2007 by family and friends of Sergio Vieira de Mello, the former High Commissioner for Human Rights. One of the aims of the Foundation is to award an Annual Prize in Sergio’s name once a year to individuals, institutions or communities in recognition of outstanding and unique work for peaceful reconciliation.
Criteria for Selecting Candidates include:
- The candidates are authentic verifiable community-based entities operating in areas of conflict and as such could be refugees, internally displaced persons or persons affected by conflict.
- Achievements for which candidates are selected are innovative and unique, and affect the lives and well-being of a substantive segment of the community positively.
- A high probability that the initiative can be sustained and replicated in similar communities elsewhere.
- Reconciliation and Co-existence resulting from the initiative is measurable, verifiable and sustainable.
Deadline 30 November, 2014, either by e-mail at: info@sergiovdmfoundation.org or by post at: Sergio Vieira de Mello Foundation: 29, Rue des Allobroges, 1227 Carouge, Geneva, Switzerland. The selection is made by an independent Jury of the Foundation. A form on the website (http://www.sergiovdmfoundation.org/award/) will facilitate the nomination process.
see also: https://thoolen.wordpress.com/tag/sergio-vieira-de-mello/ and for awards: http://www.trueheroesfilms.org/thedigest/awards
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Tags: awards, conflict resolution, foundation, human rights award, nominations, peaceful efforts, reconciliation, Sergio Vieira de Mello
