Activist Awards

Citizen
International
Achievement
 
Board of Directors
 

2005 International Activist Award Honorees

HAN DONGFANG, founder of China Labour Bulletin
Han Dongfang is a leading advocate for workers' rights and independent trade unions in mainland China. He began his activist career in Tiananmen Square in May, 1989, as co-founder and spokesperson for the Beijing Workers Autonomous Federation, China's first independent labor organization since the founding of the People's Republic. He was jailed for two years after the Tiananmen crackdown and now lives in Hong Kong, having been denied re-entry to his homeland since 1993. In 1994, he founded China Labour Bulletin, a Hong Kong-based group whose main work now includes supporting mainland Chinese workers in lawsuits against employers and government; providing legal defense for arrested Chinese worker activists; conducting trade union education and organizing work among Chinese workers; and producing research reports on labor issues and worker's struggles in China. In 1997, Han began producing regular radio broadcasts for Radio Free Asia on the topic of workers' rights and labor relations. Today, his thrice-weekly radio show - in which he interviews workers and local government officials on issues ranging from strikes and protests to the continuing carnage in China's coalmining industry - is heard by tens of millions of listeners across mainland China.

PATRICK ALLEY, CHARMIAN GOOCH and SIMON TAYLOR, founders of Global Witness
From a background in environmental investigative reporting, Alley, Gooch and Taylor created Global Witness in 1992 to address structural problems underlying some of the world's worst humanitarian and environmental crises. Now leading a team of thirty, they are helping to solve global problems affecting millions of people through detailed research, on-the-ground investigations, and highly-focused, solution-based campaigning. Their achievements include: exposing and helping end the role of the illegal timber trade in supporting the Cambodian civil war, thereby aiding the demise of the Khmer Rouge; exposing the extent to which diamonds fund conflict in countries such as Liberia and Sierra Leone and leading to an international import/export regime to eliminate illegally traded diamonds (the Kimberley Process); encouraging transparency in the oil and extractive industries so populations of oil-rich countries like Angola can hold their government accountable concerning where the income is spent. By exposing the roots of conflict and corruption, refusing to accept that some problems are too large to tackle, or attitudes too entrenched to be challenged, they have sought not front-line relief from the consequences of conflict and corruption, but long-term and lasting solutions to bring about their end.

2003 International Activist Award Honorees
Focus: The Eradication of Poverty

FAZLE ABED, founder of BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee) Creator of the largest NGO in the world in terms of scale and diversity of its operations, Fazle Abed is a pioneer in raising the standards of development organizations worldwide. Since its founding in 1972, BRAC has combated poverty, disease, child mortality and illiteracy on a massive scale by empowering the rural poor in Bangladesh, helping 3.8 million women establish 100,000 village organizations, reaching 10 million with its health programs, and disbursing well over $1 billion in loans through an empowering micro-credit program.

DR. JAYA ARUNACHALAM, founder and president of Working Women's Forum (WWF) The architect of a movement including over 700,000 women - the most destitute residents of three southern Indian states - Dr. Jaya Arunachalem has devoted a quarter of a century to freeing India's poor from helplessness and exploitation. Founded in 1978, WWF is a social organization developing the potential of women, whose strategies have relieved its members from poverty, hunger and indebtedness. Expanding on this success, she is currently developing a new network among women from developed and developing nations called the GROOTS (Grassroots Organizations Operating Together in Sisterhood) network.

ROMAN IMBODEN, creator of the Multifunctional Platform (MFP) Roman Imboden is a visionary who has married tradition with modernity in one of the poorest parts of the world. Working in the UN Development Program in Africa in the 1990s he conceived the MFP as a versatile village energy source, a one-cylinder diesel motor that performs a wide variety of functions. The central objective of the platform is to lighten the workload of rural women. Previously the women of Mali and other regions of Africa in which he has worked, would labor for six hours to pound the grain and get the water that their family required. With the platform, the work can now be done in a single hour, enabling them to use the time to become educated and otherwise enrich their lives.

ROY PROSTERMAN, founder of Rural Development Institute (RDI) Motivated to do something about the poverty and underdevelopment he had seen first-hand in Liberia and Puerto Rico, Roy Prosterman left a promising career with one of the nation's top law firms in 1965 to apply the law to improve the life of the poorest. Proposing a program of democratic land reform to address the grievances of the landless poor in developing countries, he has worked with governments in thirty-seven countries, generating laws and policies that have provided 2% of the world's arable land to 120,000,000 poor farm families in developing countries throughout the world.

2001 International Activist Award Honorees

BERNARD KRISHER, American Assistance to Cambodia
Having fled to the United States in 1941 to escape Nazi atrocities, Bernard Krisher dedicated himself decades later to those surviving the terror of the Khymer Rouge. Krisher, as Tokyo bureau chief for Newsweek (1962-80) and Fortune (1980-83), was moved by the lasting economic and social devastation of Cambodia and the greater welfare of Asia's poor. After first turning his attention in 1997 to hunger relief in North Korea, he soon raised funds to build a free hospital in Phnom Penh. Then, in a major project, Krisher secured support from the United States, Japan, Hong Kong and the World Bank to build schools in two hundred remote, impoverished Cambodian villages where the average per capita income is only $37 per year. Since electricity and telephones do not exist in most of the villages, solar panels offered the only way to power the schools and the computers provided for the students. An Internet project seeks to sell scarves produced by a rejuvenated woven-silk industry; another allows doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston to answer health related questions from the villagers via e-mail. Cambodian King Sihanouk has endorsed these projects to "strengthen our efforts to establish a civil society by alleviating the pain, the lost years and the isolation endured by our people during the insufferable years of genocide and civil war."

MARTIN CHHOTUBHAL MACWAN, Navsarjan Trust, National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights
Born among the one hundred and sixty million Dalits (formerly "Untouchables") who form the lowest "caste" in India, Martin Chhotubhal Macwan has dedicated his life to improving their fate. By the conversion of his grandfather to Christianity, he had the advantage of being educated in Jesuit schools; an incisive mind and indelible sense of compassion leading him to become an attorney. The primary catalyst was a common sight: witnessing the suffering, beating, poverty and discrimination of the Dalits at the hands of their fellow citizens. Two decades ago he founded The Navsarjan Trust to use his legal knowledge, and that of other fearless attorneys and social workers, to fight for the human rights of the Dalits. Now, in more than two thousand villages, the organization helps supply potable water, correct land reform violations and provide legal aid. Concurrently, Macwan is the Convener of the National Campaign for Dalit Human Rights, which is working to present its case before the World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in South Africa this fall. Martin Macwan argues that concern for the Dalit class is, in fact, a human rights issue. His battle continues in a country where, by law, all citizens are entitled to the same rights, yet millions must endure the suffering of what has been called "India's hidden apartheid."

1999 International Activist Award Honorees
Focus: Reconciliation in the Middle East

Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen), long convinced of the importance of negotiations, signed the Oslo Accords on the White House lawn and as Secretary General of the PLO Executive Committee continues to lead ongoing peace efforts.

Yossi Beilin, known as the father and navigator of Oslo, more than any other leader of his generation in Israeli politics, has taken the lead in initiating action and shifting public opinion toward the desirability of securing peace with the Palestinians.

Bassem Eid, based upon his experience as a senior researcher for B'Tselem, Israel's most important human rights organization, founded the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group observing the comparable record of the Palestinian Authority.

Yitzhak Frankenthal, an Orthodox Jew, after the abduction and murder of his soldier son by Hamas terrorists, dedicated his life and energies to peace with the Palestinians by first joining Netivot Shalom and now heading Parents' Circle.

Galia Golan, a Hebrew University professor and early leader of Shalom Achshav,despite two bouts of cancer, has continued as an outspoken peace activist, a builder of coalitions of very diverse people and a leader of Israel women's peace movements.

Faisal Husseini, a longtime resident of Jerusalem, has forged important links with Israeli peace activists and is one of the leading Palestinian voices in the West Bank,serving as Minister of Jerusalem Affairs for the Palestinian Authority.

Terje Rod Larsen and Mona Juul, the husband and wife team that played the pivotal role in the secret Israeli Palestinian negotiations that led to the 1993 Oslo Agreement;Larsen for his part in initiating the framework and Juul for the essential day to day responsibility; both as the essential ingredients of the "Oslo spirit".

Ahmed Qurie (Abu Ala), was one of the earliest peace activists among the Palestinian people, continuing his crucial role as the chief Palestinian negotiator of the Oslo Accords and now serves as Speaker of the Palestinian Legislative Council.

Uri Savir, was entrusted to head the Israeli negotiating team in the 1993 Oslo talks,signifying the first official Israeli government negotiation with the PLO; his guiding hand and the establishment of personal trust rejuvenated the prospects for peace.

Stanley K. Sheinbaum, private American citizen, organizer of the historic meeting in which the PLO expressed its willingness to abandon armed struggle and recognize Israel, indefatigably continues his behind the scenes secret peace initiatives.

1997 International Activist Award Honorees

MARIA ADELA ANTOKOLETZ, cofounder of Madres de Plaza de Mayo.
During the 1970s, the military dictatorship ruled Argentina with complete impunity through a campaign of terror. Kidnappings and "disappearances" of political dissidents were commonplace, with families of victims having no recourse against the government and no information regarding the fate of their loved ones. In 1976, sixty-five year old Maria Antokoletz' son, a well known labor lawyer "disappeared" from Buenos Aires. She immediately began to look for him, to no avail. Antokoletz realized she would never get an answer through standard channels. Feeling she had nothing left to lose, she banded together with thirteen other similarly affected women to publicly protest against the government. Seeking to call attention to the tragedy, on April 30, 1977 the women marched around the seat of government, the Plaza de Mayo. Despite the "disappearance" of Antokoletz' cofounder, the Madres de Plaza de Mayo continued to march weekly, drawing a growing number of supporters and eventually worldwide media attention. Antokoletz and the Madres effectively shaped the Argentine human rights movement and pressured for the return of democracy in Argentina. They played an important role in bringing the repressors and torturers to justice, and inspired others around the world to demand government accountability. Today, Antokoletz is dedicated to preventing the past from being repeated and works diligently to educate Argentine youth about the atrocities committed by their former government. She still knows nothing of the fate of her son.

MUHAMMAD YUNUS, visionary lender to the poor
In the early 1970s, Muhammad Yunus returned to his homeland of Bangladesh to teach. He soon realized that the elegant economic theories that he taught were not dealing with the root causes for the poverty drowning his neighbors. When the banks refused to make small loans to very poor people so that they could help themselves,he lent his own money and was quickly repaid. Recognizing that poor people in small villages in Bangladesh, and in fact throughout the world, had no access to the capital that would enable them to earn an honest living, he determined to dedicate his life to rectify the situation. In 1983,nearly six years after his first loan, he founded Grameen Bank, an "upside-down" bank that lends to the poorest rural villagers, enabling them to start small businesses to support their families. Ninety-four percent of the borrowers are women; ninety-eight percent of all borrowers repay their loans in full. Today, Grameen Bank has enriched the lives of more than two million people in over fifty countries, and has become a model for innovative micro finance programs throughout the world. Muhammad Yunus' singular vision has effectively changed the way the world views money lending to the poor and has precipitated vast positive social change. "One day," he hopes, "poverty can be placed in a museum."

1995 International Activist Award Honorees

JOSE RAMOS-HORTA, persistent advocate for the people of East Timor.
When the Portuguese withdrew from East Timor in 1975, the country's largest political party, Fretelin, took power and declared the country independent. A government was installed and Ramos-Horta, a twenty-five year old journalist, was appointed Minister of External Relations. But Indonesia refused to recognize the new government and on December 7, 1975 Indonesian troops invaded East Timor. Just three days earlier, Ramos-Horta flew to New York to present his fledgling government's credentials to the United Nations. For a young man who grew up in the jungle where there were no cars except for the yearly visit of a merchant in his old truck to now find himself in the center of world power with the task of addressing the Security Council as the exiled representative of an extinguished government, was a formidable task. But obviously the invasion of East Timor was a clear breach of the United Nations Charter and the Security Council responded to Ramos-Horta's plea and quickly passed a unanimous resolution reaffirming the right of the people of East Timor to self-determination and calling on Indonesia to withdraw all troops. However, Indonesia, due to its economic strength, was able to ignore this and subsequent resolutions of both the Security Council and the General Assembly. To counter this injustice, The Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize to Ramos-Horta and his fellow East Timorese activist, Bishop Belo.

BEATE and SERGE KLARSFELD, renowned hunters of Nazi war criminals.
Beate, a German Christian, was virtually unaware of the Nazi's crimes until she arrived in France at the age of twenty-one where she met Serge, a French Jew of Romanian origin. Her father was a soldier in the Wehrmacht; his died in Auschwitz. Together, they have fought against racism, hatred and anti-Semitism through out the world. Their tenacity, and in some cases audacity, has exposed, confronted and brought to justice many notorious Gestapo leaders and those who collaborated with the Nazis in their crimes against humanity. They have dedicated their lives to keeping the history and human significance of the Holocaust alive in the conscience of the world. Their courage and determination resulted in the apprehension of the notorious Klaus Barbie, the Gestapo chief of Lyon. It was Beate, who in 1971 found and unmasked Barbie in Bolivia, yet it was not until twelve years later that their mutual tireless efforts were rewarded with Barbie's arrest and imprisonment in France. Their dedication and mission is best described in Serge's reflection, "Our marriage has forged our destiny, and we shall leave behind a legacy of brave deeds and badly needed precise documentation that will, I hope, have their collective impact. We will have accomplished a little of what could be expected of Germans and Jews of our generation."

1993 International Activist Award Honorees

NELSON MANDELA, President, Republic of South Africa
A longtime leader in the fight against apartheid, Nelson Mandela became a symbol of the resistance to his country's institutional segregation, a two tiered system that drew condemnation from around the globe. After almost three decades in prison, Mandela was finally freed in 1990 and was elected president of the African National Congress in 1991. Mandela has been an outspoken critic of South Africa's now dismantled system of apartheid throughout his life. While still a law student he joined the African National Congress in 1944, co-founded the ANC Youth League and led peaceful campaigns against the country's discriminatory laws. Such measures included the "pass" laws requiring non-whites to carry permission papers while visiting white neighborhoods. When the ANC was outlawed in 1960, Mandela, after sixteen years of non-violent protest, co-founded Umkhonto we Sizwe, an armed wing of the ANC. In 1962 he was arrested and sentenced to five years hard labor; two years later Mandela was convicted of sabotage and treason and sentenced to life imprisonment. In April of 1994, in his country's first democratic national election, Mandela was elected president of the Republic of South Africa.

WEI JINGSHENG, Leader, Democracy Wall Movement.
An uncompromising advocate of human rights and democracy in China during the Democracy Wall movement of the late seventies, Wei Jingsheng was originally sentenced to fifteen years in prison for his political views. In 1989, a call for his release led to a massacre of protesters in Beijing's Tiananmen Square. Born in Central China, Wei served in the Red Guards and the People's Liberation Army following the Cultural Revolution in 1966. His military service allowed him to travel widely throughout China and witness conditions of shocking poverty. In late 1978, encouraged by an apparent cultural thaw in China, Wei lent his voice to a movement calling for democratic reform. He posted an essay entitled "Democracy:The Fifth Modernization" on Xidan Wall ("Democracy Wall") in Beijing, calling for true democracy in China and criticizing then vice premier Deng Xiaoping. He was arrested four days later on March 29, 1979. In October of that year Wei was convicted of counterrevolutionary propaganda and incitement and was sentenced to fifteen years in prison. In September of 1993, after spending most of his sentence in solitary confinement, he was released six months early. Immediately resuming his struggle for human rights, he was re-arrested in April, of 1994 and in December, 1995 he was tried on the charge of trying to overthrow the government and sentenced to an additional fourteen years in prison. His courage and commitment have caused him to be considered the leader of the democracy movement and he has become his nation's most prominent dissident. Released from prison in November, 1997, Wei was exiled from China and now,from a base in the United States, continues his advocacy of democracy in China.