Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards

As part of the 16 Days Campaign Against Gender Based Violence (November 25 – December 10, 2014) AWID is honoring Women Human Rights Defenders (WHRDs) Who Are No Longer With Us.

The tribute was first launched at AWID’s 12th International Forum on Women’s Rights in Development, held in April 2012 in Istanbul, Turkey. The new version of the tribute takes the form of an online photo exhibition launched on 25 November, Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and ends on 10 December, International Human Rights Day with a special slide show featuring 16 WHRDs from around the world. The tribute features photographs and biographies of rights leaders from around the world. Each day of the campaign AWID will share the story of a WHRD(s) on its website as well as through Facebook and Twitter using hashtags #16days and #AWIDMembers and link back to the full online exhibit which will commemorate and celebrate the work and lives of WHRDs who have passed away since January 2011.

An example is Sunila Abeyesekera a lifelong women human rights defender from Sri Lanka, who played a lead role in the global women’s rights movement for over 40 years to be honored on 29 November which is International Women Human Rights Defenders’ Day. [https://thoolen.wordpress.com/2013/09/09/sri-lankan-hrd-sunila-abeysekera-dies-tribute-by-a-paper-bird/]

About one third of those honored in this tribute were killed or disappeared due to their activism. Women like Agnes Torres, from Mexico, Cheryl Ananayo, from the Philippines who was assassinated as she struggled against a mining company; Colombian women’s human rights defender Angelica Bello who died in suspicious circumstances; and Petite Jasmine, board member of Swedish sex worker’s rights organization Rose Alliance who was murdered by the father of her children, who had threatened and stalked her on numerous occasions.