Hans Thoolen on Human Rights Defenders and their awards

On 21 April 2011, the US State Department give its Human Rights Defenders Award to a Cuban opposition group whose members are wives and relatives of jailed dissidents , know as “Las Damas de Blanco”  (the Ladies in White). Founded after the arrest and imprisonment of 75 Cuban dissidents in 2003, the women march peacefully in Havana every Sunday in white clothing, a color they say is intended to symbolize peace. Even though the 75 dissidents have all been freed the Ladies in White continue their protests. The group says that there are still about 60 prisoners left to be freed and is preparing a list of dissidents still in prison. “We are very pleased and moved to know that our peaceful actions to free political prisoners have been recognized,” Berta Soler, one of the leaders of the group, told AFP in Havana.

While the recognition is totally deserved, the question is whether US  recognition for a Cuban group will impress anybody. The wider question is whether this and other purely governmental awards really give the protection intended.

There is no internationally recognized definition of what constitutes a truly independent award, but it clearly involves a Jury that is completely autonomous and has the final say. A strong non-governmental element in the management of the award would also seem to be indispensable. Without these attributes, it is too easy for human rights violating governments to portray the laureates as ‘stooges’ supported by foreign powers.  These regimes may allege this anyway, but is easier to do when the award is plainly a governmental award. Moreover, Gaddafi run for years a Human Rights award (with a big prize) which not many Human Rights Defenders would gladly accept.