30 November 2011
SOURCE: Arabic Network for Human Rights Information
(ANHRI/IFEX) - Cairo, 24 November 2011 - The lawyer and Executive Director of ANHRI, Gamal Eid, returned to Cairo in the
evening of 23 November from Berlin after receiving the Human Dignity Award from German President Christian Wulff, and
the President of the Foundation, Roland Berger. The award was granted by the German Foundation Roland Berger for the
year 2011.
ANHRI from Egypt, Radhia Nasraoui, a lawyer from Tunisia, and Syrian activist Mazen Darwish, were honored as they were
selected among 200 candidates for the award in 2011, in recognition of their role as human rights activists in their
stand against dictatorships and their unrelenting support for the Arab Spring revolutions along with all pro-democracy
supporters in the Arab world.
Eid, Nasraoui and Darwish received the prize in the annual celebration event, held by Roland Berger on 22 November of
each year. President Wulff and the president of the foundation handed them a bronze medal symbolising a world free of
violence, as well as the amount of one million Euros, divided among the three winners. The funds are intended for the
development of their work and to enable them to continue their support for human rights and human dignity.
"Yes, since ANHRI was established, we have declared our bias towards democracy, the citizens and victims of abuses
perpetrated by the dictator Mubarak against millions of Egyptians. We have been and will continue to be biased towards
the right of Egyptian and Arab citizens to democracy and dignity, because neutrality in the countries where dictatorship
reigns is a form of collusion that we cannot accept, and we will continue our support until we are granted the right to
a decent life and democracy that we deserve," said Eid.
"This honor and award are the result of hard work exerted by human rights activists and serious human rights
organizations in Egypt and the Arab world, that responded strongly to the autocratic regimes and contributed seriously
to the atmosphere of revolutions which broke out mainly for the defense of human dignity and social justice. We dedicate
this award to the lives of hundreds of young Arabs and Egyptians who sacrificed their lives and were martyred in order
for their homelands to enjoy democracy, justice and the rule of law. We pledge to spend the prize money in the
activities and areas relating to the entrenchment of human rights and support for the rights of citizens to enjoy
dignity, justice, democracy," added Eid.
The Defenders of the Human Dignity Award, that was obtained by ANHRI, and was awarded by Reporters Without Borders and
the Iranian lawyer Shirin Ebadi, is a confirmation of the credibility granted to it by Egyptian citizens. It also
represents an appreciation by the free world of the role played by ANHRI together with other serious human rights
institutions in Egypt to support human rights and defend their dignity. Moreover, it comes at a time when the Egyptian
government is waging a smear campaign against human rights organizations and is aiming to retaliate against them for
their roles in the overthrow of the ousted dictator. These organisations continue to address the flagrant violations
under the rule of the Military Council and the government of Essam Sharaf that is still full of remnants of the corrupt
and dissolved National Democratic Party. ANHRI focuses solely on the credibility and the protection of Egyptian
citizens; in consequence, we dedicate this award to them and promise them to continue our defense of the right of every
citizen and every oppressed person, to a decent and humane life.
ENDS