In 1988, Nelson Mandela was the first recipient of the Sakharov Prize to Freedom of Conscience, a tribute that the European Union pays year after year to human rights defenders around the world.
This year, after a secret vote by MEPs, the possible winners of this recognition are the Venezuelans María Corina Machado and Edmundo González, as well as the academic and anti-corruption activist from Azerbaijan, Gubad Ibadoghlu, and the organizations Women Wage Peace and Women of the Sun, from Israel and Palestine respectively.
In 2023, Jina Mahsa Amini —arrested by Iranian authorities for not wearing her hijab correctly and died in police custody—and the Iranian ‘Women, Life, Freedom’ movement were the winners of the award.
In 2017, the Venezuelan opposition received the award “for their constant courage in the search for freedom and prosperity in Venezuela.”
The Conference of Presidents (the president, Roberta Metsolaand the leaders of the political groups) will choose the winner of the award on Thursday, October 24, which will be announced after the plenary session in Strasbourg.
The awards ceremony – which includes a prize of 50,000 euros for the winners – will take place on December 18 in Strasbourg.
The prize has been awarded to dissidents, political leaders, journalists, lawyers, civil society activists, writers, mothers, wives, minority leaders, an anti-terrorist group, peace activists, an anti-torture activist, a comedian graphic, people imprisoned for a long period for reasons of conscience, a film director, the United Nations as an organization and even a girl fighting for the right to education.
This initiative promotes freedom of expression, minority rights, respect for international law, the development of democracy and the application of the rule of law. Several of the winners have subsequently been recognized with the Nobel Peace Prize, including Nelson Mandela, Malala YousafzaiDenis Mukwege or Nadia Murad.
The award owes its name to Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharova Soviet nuclear physicist and dissident, activist for human rights and democratic freedoms.
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