Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards

The FIDH in Paris reported that Dr. Vo Van Ai, a life-long independent Vietnamese human rights defender, has been awarded the 2011 Special Prize for Freedom (Premio Speciale alla Liberta) by the Italian organisation Società Libera. The Prize was presented in Lucca on June 24, 2011. Dr. Vo is the President and founder of the Vietnam Committee on Human Rights (VCHR), a member organization of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH). The Vietnam Committee aims to monitor human rights in Vietnam, mobilise support for victims of human rights abuses and promote efforts to advance democracy in Vietnam.  The Special Prize is a deserving recognition of Dr. Vo’s tireless efforts to demand greater respect and protection of human rights and to lend a strong voice to the silent majority in Viet Nam where the mere exercise of, and aspirations for, fundamental freedoms is stifled or, even worse, criminalised, the FIDH added.