European Human Rights Prize
Encyclopedia
The European Human Rights Prize, also known as the Council of Europe Human Rights Prize, is a human rights
prize that is awarded by the Council of Europe
in recognition of outstanding contributions to the cause of human rights as enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights
.
It was instituted in 1980 when the Committee of Ministers adopted Resolution (80) 1 containing regulations on a European Human Rights Prize.
The prize has not been awarded since 1998.
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
prize that is awarded by the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
in recognition of outstanding contributions to the cause of human rights as enshrined in the European Convention on Human Rights
European Convention on Human Rights
The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...
.
It was instituted in 1980 when the Committee of Ministers adopted Resolution (80) 1 containing regulations on a European Human Rights Prize.
The prize has not been awarded since 1998.
Winners
- 1998 – Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (HRFT), Chiara LubichChiara LubichChiara Lubich was an Italian Catholic activist and leader and foundress of the Focolare Movement.- Early life :...
and the Committee on the Administration of JusticeCommittee on the Administration of JusticeCAJ is an independent human rights organisation with cross community membership in Northern Ireland and beyond. It was established in 1981 and lobbies and campaigns on a broad range of human rights issues...
(CAJ, Northern Ireland) - 1995 – Sergei Kovalyov and Raoul WallenbergRaoul WallenbergRaoul Wallenberg was a Swedish businessman, diplomat and humanitarian. He is widely celebrated for his successful efforts to rescue thousands of Jews in Nazi-occupied Hungary from the Holocaust, during the later stages of World War II...
- 1992 – Felix ErmacoraFelix ErmacoraFelix Ermacora was the leading human rights expert of Austria and a member of the Austrian People's Party...
and Médecins Sans FrontièresMédecins Sans Frontières' , or Doctors Without Borders, is a secular humanitarian-aid non-governmental organization best known for its projects in war-torn regions and developing countries facing endemic diseases. Its headquarters are in Geneva, Switzerland... - 1989 – Lech WałęsaLech WałęsaLech Wałęsa is a Polish politician, trade-union organizer, and human-rights activist. A charismatic leader, he co-founded Solidarity , the Soviet bloc's first independent trade union, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, and served as President of Poland between 1990 and 95.Wałęsa was an electrician...
and the International Helsinki Federation for Human RightsInternational Helsinki Federation for Human RightsThe International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights was a self-governing group of non-governmental, not-for-profit organizations that act to protect human rights throughout Europe, North America and Central Asia... - 1986 – Christian BrodaChristian BrodaChristian Broda was an Austrian lawyer and politician of the Social Democratic Party of Austria. He served as Minister of Justice of Austria from 1960 to 1966 in the third cabinet of Julius Raab, and again as Minister of Justice in the cabinet of Bruno Kreisky from 1970 to 1983...
and Raúl AlfonsínRaúl AlfonsínRaúl Ricardo Alfonsín was an Argentine lawyer, politician and statesman, who served as the President of Argentina from December 10, 1983, to July 8, 1989. Alfonsín was the first democratically-elected president of Argentina following the military government known as the National Reorganization... - 1983 – Amnesty InternationalAmnesty InternationalAmnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
- 1980 – International Commission of JuristsInternational Commission of JuristsThe International Commission of Jurists is an international human rights non-governmental organization. The Commission itself is a standing group of 60 eminent jurists , including members of the senior judiciary in Australia, Canada, and South Africa and the former UN High Commissioner for Human...