Brussels, 06/10/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday 5 October, the European Parliament's foreign affairs, development and human rights committees presented nine nominees for the “2010 Sakharov Prize” for freedom of thought. The winner will receive €50,000. Each candidate was selected by a political group or at least 40 individual MEPs. On 18 October MEPs from the foreign affairs and development committees will vote to decide the three finalists. The winner will be chosen by the Conference of Presidents of the EP on 21 October in Strasbourg and will be invited to attend the prize-giving ceremony on 15 December in Strasbourg. The nine nominees are as follows in alphabetical order:
The “Access” movement (proposed by the ALDE Group). This is a global citizen movement that helps human rights defenders protect themselves and their communications online. Founded in the wake of the 2009 Iranian post-election crackdown, Access provided critical technical support that helped keep the internet open for the Iranian democracy movement.
Haytham Al-Maleh from Syria (proposed by the Finnish Green MEP Heidi Hautala and 44 other MEPs) is aged 80 and is a prominent Syrian human rights lawyer and activist who was sentenced to three years imprisonment on 4 July 2010 on the grounds of "transferring false and exaggerated news that weakens national sentiment". Awarding the 2010 Sakharov Prize to Mr Al-Maleh could be seen as a major support for all those who defend human rights and promote democratic reforms in Syria, and would launch a significant signal to the EU, which has to guarantee coherence and efficiency of its external action in terms of respect and promotion of human rights", according to the signatories.
The Israeli NGO “Breaking the Silence” (proposed by Rebecca Harms and Daniel Cohn-Bendit on behalf of the Greens/EFA Group and by Lothar Bisky for the GUE/NGL) was established in 2004 by Israeli soldiers and veterans who collect and provide testimonies about their military service in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem during the second intifada. The NGO is dedicated to exposing the Israeli public to the realities of the Israeli occupation as seen through the eyes of Israeli soldiers and to promoting debate about the impact of the prolonged occupation on both the Palestinian population and Israeli society. By awarding the Sakharov Prize to the Israeli NGO, Daniel Cohn-Bendit declared: "We want to give peace a chance".
Guillermo Fariñas was proposed by the head of the EPP Group, Joseph Daul, the conservative group (ECR) and more than 90 other MEPs who are fighting for freedom and human rights in Cuba. Mr Fariñas is a doctor in psychology, an independent journalist and political dissident in Cuba. In recent years he has been on hunger strike 23 times to protest against the Cuban regime.
Aminatou Haidar is a Sahrawi human rights defender and political activist for the independence of the Western Sahara. She was nominated by the MEPs Norbert Neuser, Willy Meyer, Raül Romeva i Rueda and 40 other MEPs.
Dawit Isaak (proposed by the MEPs Olle Schmidt, Cecilia Wikström, Marit Paulsen and Lena Ek and 37 other MEPs) is a Swedish-Eritrean journalist and has been a political prisoner in very harsh conditions for over 3,000 days. On several occasions, the European Parliament has demanded his immediate release. In 2009, he was one of the three finalists for the Sakharov Prize.
Birtukan Mideksa (proposed by the S&D Group). This Ethiopian politician and former judge is the leader of the opposition Unity for Democracy and Justice Party. At the end of 2008, she was arrested again and imprisoned on a life sentence for having informed journalists in Sweden about the way in which opposition leaders were released in her country.
Father Thadeus Nguyen Van Ly (proposed by the conservative ECR Group) is a Vietnamese Catholic priest and human rights activist, who only uses non-violent methods to attain his objective of promoting universal human rights. He has spent more than 20 years in prison or under house arrest for supporting human dignity and democracy.
The Christian Open Doors charity (proposed by MEPs from the conservative ECR Group). This is an ecumenical Christian charity working to defend persecuted Christians. According to those presenting the nomination, this religious minority suffers from the most persecution. The organisation is active in more than 45 countries in a broad range of activities and was founded in 1955 by Anne van der Bijl from the Netherlands, after she visited Christians persecuted in Communist Poland.
The Italian MEP Mario Borghezio (Lega Nord) failed in his attempt to nominate the far right MEP, Geert Wilders, who is being taken to court in the Netherlands for expressing anti-Islamic ideas. (H.B./transl.fl)