Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network (PAHRD–Net) has opened a call for nominations for the 2nd Edition of human rights defenders awards. The awards will honor exceptional individuals who peacefully promote and protect universally recognized rights as stated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. Altogether six awards will be presented, one overall award and five sub-regional awards:
- Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Award
- East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Award
- West Africa Human Rights Defenders Award
- Southern Africa Human Rights Defenders Award
- Central Africa Human Rights Defenders Award
- Northern Africa Human Rights Defenders Award
Both individuals and organizations are eligible for the award. Nominations should be received not later than 20 September 2014. Please use the forms below. Submissions can be made in Arabic, French, English or Portuguese. Return your nomination to hrdawards@defenddefenders.org.
Awards include support to the human rights work of the winning individual or organisation. The winners will be selected by an independent jury and the awards will be presented to the winners at the occasion of the Ordinary Session of the Africa Commission on Human and People’s Rights.
About Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network During the inaugural All Africa HRDs Conference held in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1998, the challenges faced by human rights defenders were enumerated and a strategy was developed to establish five sub-regional networks to meet the needs of and build protection institutions at national levels. Pan-African HRDs Network (PAHRD-Net) is made up of five sub-regional networks i.e. Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies, East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Network, West Africa Human Rights Defenders Network, Southern African Human Rights Defenders Network hosted by the International Commission of Jurists and the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, and Central African Human Rights Defenders Network.
The PAHRD-Net aims at contributing safe legal and working environment for HRDs and providing ongoing and effective support to human rights defenders through building their capacity in protection curriculum and advocacy in order to ensure that those defenders can in turn offer greater protection to the victims and witnesses they work with. It further seeks to support the efforts by other stakeholders to mainstream defenders’ protection into the agenda of key stakeholders, notably relevant national authorities, national and international organizations and foreign governments.
Share this Post