This year’s nominees for the Sakharov Prize from the European Parliament have been announced
The finalists of the Sakharov Prize of the European Parliament this year were the Azerbaijani anti-corruption activist Gubad Ibadoglu, the leader of the democratic forces of Venezuela María Corina Machado together with the elected president Edmundo González Urrutia, as well as two women’s movements – Israeli and Palestinian, which advocate peace in the Middle East. The committees on foreign affairs and development of the European Parliament voted for these candidates. writes “Ukrinform”.
“The Sakharov Prize is not just a symbolic act of the award ceremony. It is a tangible political commitment of the European Parliament to stand side by side with the laureates. To support the causes they stand for and for which they fight and often sacrifice themselves.”, — said the head of the Human Rights Committee, Muniar Saturi, before announcing the nominees.
Dr. Gubad Ibadoglu, a prominent scientist and anti-corruption activist from Azerbaijan, was arrested in 2023 for criticizing the oil and gas industry and creating a fund to recover the country’s stolen resources. He is under house arrest and faces up to 17 years in prison.
María Corina Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia, who represent Venezuela’s democratic forces, also made it to the list of finalists. Both suffered a crackdown by Venezuelan authorities after the 2023 presidential election, which the opposition says was won by González Urrutia. Machado is now in hiding, while González Urrutia is in exile in Spain.
Other finalists were two women’s movements — the Israeli “Women for Peace” and the Palestinian “Women of the Sun” who work together on cultural understanding and non-violent conflict resolution in the Middle East.
The Andrei Sakharov Prize “For Freedom of Thought” is the highest award of the European Union for human rights activities. The winner will be chosen on October 24, and the award ceremony will take place on December 18 in Strasbourg.
