Strasbourg, 11/12/2007 (Agence Europe) - On Tuesday, the European Parliament awarded the 2007 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought to Sudanese human rights lawyer, Salih Mahmoud Osman, who acts in defence of the war victims in Darfur.
Thousands of persons who have been imprisoned, tortured or humiliated are familiar with the name of Salih Mahmoud Osman, said Hans-Gert Pöttering, Parliament President, in an emotional tribute to the man who, in addition to being a lawyer, is also an elected member of the opposition benches, and who puts his life at risk to defend the rights of citizens against the reprisals of a government that refuses to deliver those responsible up to international justice.
No-one and no family has been spared detention and torture, said Mahmoud Osman, convinced that protection against daily violence can only be envisaged through intervention on the part of Europe and the United Nations. Such intervention “is imperative”, although the Sudanese government is not willing to agree to it for now. The European Parliament is invited to put pressure on the Sudanese authorities to make them change their position. In the same way, Mr Osman is convinced of the major role that Europe can play in facilitating peace in his country, even though the splitting of rebel groups tends to complicate the situation. Europe is invited to listen to the representatives of civil society in Sudan.
There will be no lasting peace in Sudan if there is no justice, says Mr Osman, but the search for justice “must not be compromised by any political deal”. Given the still unpunished human rights violations, Mr Osman calls for greater support for the work of the International Criminal Court, in favour of rule of law and freedom of expression and association.
The new Sakharov Prize winner feels he has strong support from the European institutions and especially from the European Commission's Bureau in Khartoum, and thanks the Parliament delegation which came to assess the situation on the spot during June. He finally wished to recall the names of all the other candidates this year, who, like himself, are engaged in the struggle to defend human rights in their own countries. (L.G.)