European Parliament 2014-2019
Committee on Development Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Human Rights
13.9.2018
NOTICE TO MEMBERS
Subject: SAKHAROV PRIZE FOR FREEDOM OF THOUGHT 2018
Members will find attached the list of candidates (in alphabetical order) who have been nominated for the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2018 pursuant to the Sakharov Prize statute by at least 40 Members of the European Parliament or by a political group, as well as the justifications and biographies received by the Human Rights Actions Unit.
DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR EXTERNAL POLICIES
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EN United in diversity EN SAKHAROV PRIZE FOR FREEDOM OF THOUGHT 2018
Candidates proposed, in alphabetical order, by political groups and individual Members
Candidate Activity Nominated by AFRIFORUM is an NGO that aims at protecting the rights of minorities in South Africa with a specific focus on the rights of Afrikaners. AFRIFORUM tries to raise awareness on the problem of farm attacks and farmer murders, and on the expropriation of farmland without compensation. Europe of Nations and 1 AFRIFORUM Such a policy, which the ANC government wants to Freedom carry out, threatens not only the livelihood of farm owners, but of all farm workers, regardless of their ethnicity. This is especially pertinent in a context of an endemic violent crime problem, and a political climate in which leaders openly incite violence against farmers. Seyran ATEŞ is a German lawyer of Turkish origin and an activist fighting against political and religious extremism, including the oppression of women. After setting up a first mosque in which, European contrary to the usual practice in Islam, women and Conservatives and men can pray together, she opened the Ibn Rushd Reformists Group 2 Seyran ATEŞ Goethe Mosque in Berlin in June 2017. Despite and having become the victim of death threats requiring Hans-Olaf Henkel and her to receive personal protection around the clock, 40 other Members ATEŞ remains a courageous champion of a modern and open Islam, which the Berlin mosque represents. CAESAR is the code name of a former Syrian military photographer who smuggled more than 55,000 photographs documenting the gravest crimes out of Syria. Human Rights Watch confirmed the authenticity of his photographs, which play an Group of the Alliance 3 CAESAR essential role in building criminal and civil cases of Liberals and against those responsible. CAESAR took a great Democrats for Europe risk, to take the chance of seeing accountability for the crimes he documented. He thus made a courageous contribution to the fight against impunity in Syria.
PE628.016v01-00 2/15 CM\1162428EN.docx EN Dewayne JOHNSON is a former groundskeeper who worked for a school district in Benicia, USA, and who just won a landmark case against Monsanto, with the Jury awarding him $289 million in damages. JOHNSON was the first person to take Europe of Freedom Dewayne 4 the company to trial over allegations that their and Direct Democracy JOHNSON herbicide sold under the brand Roundup cause Group cancer. JOHNSON is a dying man with just months to live. He nevertheless stood proudly during the process hoping that his victory would set a precedent for other cases against Montsanto. Boat Refugee Foundation, Jugend Rettet, Lifeline Rescue Boat, Médecins Sans Frontières international, MOAS, Proactiva Open Arms, Nominated by the PROEM-AID, Save the Children, Sea Eye, Sea- NGOs protecting Group of the Watch, and SOS Mediterranée: since 2015, the human rights and Progressive Alliance workers and volunteers of these NGOs have been saving lives of of Socialists and saving lives of migrants crossing the Mediterranean, 5 migrants across Democrats while risking their own. They defend human rights the and and the respect for international law and uphold Mediterranean every day the values and principles on which the EU Group of the Sea is founded. However, for that they have experienced Greens/European Free pressure, smear campaigns, harassment and judicial Alliance persecution, and today face serious obstacles to their work. Oleg SENTSOV is a Ukrainian film director, born in 1976. He was detained on 10 May 2014 in Simferopol, Crimea, and convicted to 20 years of imprisonment on charges of plotting terrorist acts against Russian "de facto" rule in Crimea. Amnesty lnternational described the court process as "an unfair trial before a military court". He was Group of the sentenced because he believed in the supremacy of 6 Oleg SENTSOV European People's law and values, over brute force and deception. This Party (Christian makes him a prisoner of conscience. Continuing his Democrats) hunger strike for over 100 days now, SENTSOV has also become a powerful symbol of the fate of the approximately 70 Ukrainian citizens illegally arrested and convicted to long prison sentences by the Russian occupation forces in the Crimean peninsula after its annexation.
CM\1162428EN.docx 3/15 PE628.016v01-00 EN Mary WAGNER is a Canadian activist who was imprisoned, whereas she only tried to talk to women entering an abortion clinic and was giving each one a rose. Her case gathered international attention in 2011 and she is known worldwide as a prisoner of conscience. Not only did she inspire many people to 7 Mary WAGNER Marek Jurek and 41 save women and their babies from tragedy, but she other Members also became a hero of humanity who is now a global voice of unborn children in fight for their human rights. She spent almost five long years in jail for her peaceful efforts to save women and children from the violence of abortion. Nasser ZEFZAFI is the leader of the Hirak, a social movement in the Rif region (Morocco) that claims Group of the dignity, equality and social justice. Since 2016, the European United Moroccan authorities have imprisoned more than Left/Nordic Green 2,000 people in connection with the Rif protests and Left some, including minors, received heavy sentences. 7 Nasser ZEFZAFI and Arrested in May 2017, ZEFZAFI was condemned in June 2018 to 20 years in prison for "conspiracy Marie-Christine against the security of the State". On 21/8, King Vergiat, Kati Piri, Mohammed VI pardoned 188 Hirak activists, but Judith Sargentini and not him. From 30/8 to 6/9, ZEFZAFI was on hunger 39 other Members strike to denounce his conditions of detention.
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AfriForum
Nominated by the Europe of Nations and Freedom
AfriForum is a non-governmental organisation founded in 2006, registered as a non-profit company, with the aim of protecting the rights of minorities in South Africa. While the organisation functions on the internationally recognised principle of the protection of minorities, AfriForum has a specific focus on the rights of Afrikaners as a community living in South Africa. Membership is, however, not exclusive, and any person who can associate him or herself with the contents of the Civil Rights Manifest of the organisation, may join.
The organisation is active in several fields: safety and security, community affairs, local government, environmental affairs, education as well as preserving the language, culture and heritage in South Africa.
AfriForum tries to raise national and international awareness on the problem of farm attacks and farm murders, and on the expropriation of farm land without compensation (EWC). Such a policy, which the ANC government wants to carry out, is a threat to property rights, food supply and food security. Not only does it threaten the livelihood of farm owners, but of all farm workers, regardless of their ethnicity. This is especially pertinent in a context of an endemic violent crime problem, and a political climate in which leaders like Mr Julius Malema, president of the third-largest political party in South Africa, openly incite violence against farmers.
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Seyran Ateş
Nominated by the European Conservatives and Reformists Group and Hans-Olaf Henkel and 40 other Members
Seyran ATEŞ is a lawyer and an activist born in Istanbul, Turkey. Her family moved to Germany when she was six years old. In July 2017, together with the former Austrian Federal Councillor Efgani Dönmez and the lawyer Sebastian Reimer, she initiated the European Citizens‘ Initiative Stop Extremism (ECI), a package of measures against political and religious extremism in Europe. The aim is to address loopholes in the fight against extremism and establish effective protection of European citizens.
In 2016, ATEŞ, along with others, began setting up a mosque in which, contrary to the usual practice in Islam, women and men can pray together. On June 16, 2017, she opened the Ibn Rushd Goethe Mosque in Berlin. After about 100 death threats, she started receiving personal protection around the clock. Despite having become the victim of threats, ATEŞ has incarnated her role as a courageous champion of a modern and open Islam, which the Berlin mosque represents.
Through lectures and publications, she fights against the oppression of women, which is symbolised in forced or child marriages and honour killings, legitimised by a false understanding of Islam. She has received several death threats and left her job for six years, as she was scared for her own life and the life of her daughter. In the summer of 2012, she reopened her law office to be a lawyer, especially for women seeking help. As a student, she worked in a centre for women from Turkey who wanted to protect themselves from domestic violence to finance her law studies at the Free University of Berlin. In 1984, during the counselling session, a man shot her client and seriously injured Seyran ATEŞ. ATEŞ had a near-death experience.
Therefore, ATEŞ remarkable achievements and determination, as well as her tireless and persevering commitment to human rights and freedom, make her a formidable candidate for the Sakharov Prize.
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Caesar
Nominated by the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
Caesar is the code name of a former Syrian military photographer who smuggled more than 55,000 photographs documenting the gravest crimes out of Syria.
After the start of the war in 2011, Caesar’s task was to take pictures of the corpses of both dead Syrian soldiers and political opponents killed in detention. In 2013, Caesar fled from Syria with the intention of making public the crimes committed. Risking his own life and his family’s security, he secretly copied photographs taken in Syria’s prisons onto usb sticks and smuggled them out of the country.
A year later, Caesars’ photographs were published on the internet. More than half of the images show people who died in Syrian prisons as a result of torture, execution, disease, malnutrition or other abuse. Human Rights Watch confirmed the authenticity of the images in an 86-page report "If the Dead Could Speak. Mass Deaths and Torture in Syria’s Detention Facilities" published in December 2015. An exhibition of the photos was organised in the European Parliament, but also in the Holocaust Museum in the United States.
The war in Syria has lasted longer than World War Two. Since 2011, hundreds of thousands of Syrians have died, including over 100,000 civilians. Despite the widespread allegations of war crimes, crimes against humanity and even possibly genocide, the perpetrators of these crimes have to this day not been held to account.
It is in this context that the nomination of Caesar for the Sakharov prize 2018 is so important. Caesar took a great risk, to take the chance of seeing accountability for the crimes he documented. In the fight against impunity, this kind of documentation is essential. Caesar’s photographs play a vital role in building criminal and civil cases against those responsible.
By awarding the Sakharov prize to Caesar, the European Parliament emphasises that the EU must continuously strive to hold those responsible for crimes committed in Syria to account.
There is no doubt that once the history of the conflict in Syria is written, Caesar’s photos will feature in the chapters of documentation, and hopefully accountability.
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Dewayne Johnson
Nominated by the Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy Group
Dewayine Johnson is a 46 year old former groundskeeper, father of three, who worked for a school district in Benicia, USA, and who just won a landmark case against Monsanto, with the Jury awarding him 289$ Million in damages.
Johnson was the first person to take Monsanto to trial over allegations that the chemicals sold by the company under the brand Roundup cause cancer. The herbicide is registered in 130 countries and approved for use on more than 100 crops but in 2015, the World Health Organization’s international agency for research on cancer (IARC) classified its components as “probably carcinogenic to humans”, triggering a wave of legal and legislative challenges. This development is a huge victory and is potentially setting a precedent for other cases against the company.
The idea of the nomination is, first of all, to pay tribute to Dewayne specific fight. Dewayne is a dying man with just months to live, nevertheless he stood proudly during the process, with the lawyers stating that he is, in practice, a dead man. He took the stand and he discussed thoroughly his pain and suffering as skin lesions took over his body.
The nomination would also be significant for all the other individuals and NGOs fighting Monsanto abuses and an inspiration for all those who wouldn’t otherwise dare to go before the court to defend their rights.
Johnson said that the jury’s verdict is far bigger than his lawsuit and he added he hopes the case bolsters the thousands of similar lawsuits pending against the company and brings national attention to the issue.
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NGOs protecting human rights and saving lives of migrants across the Mediterranean Sea
Nominated by the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats and Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance
Since 2015, NGOs from different EU countries have launched Search and Rescue operations (SAR) in the Mediterranean -firstly in the Aegean sea and more recently in the central Mediterranean- in an attempt to save the lives of refugees and migrants who keep losing their lives in the attempt the reach the EU shores.
These NGOs have become a vital pillar of the humanitarian response given by Europe to this human tragedy, filling a void left by the lack of reaction and commitment from European governments and institutions.
These organizations are an outstanding illustration of what it means to defend human rights and the respect for international law, two of the main reasons to award the Sakharov prize. However, due to their humanitarian actions, they experience pressure, smear campaigns, harassment and judicial persecution, and face serious obstacles to their activities in one of the deadliest migration routes in the world.
By awarding them with the Sakharov Prize the European Parliament will demonstrate our solidarity with these Search and Rescue NGOs, their workers and volunteers who, while saving lives, are risking their own and whose brave actions are upholding every day the values and principles on which the European Union is founded.
List of NGOs nominated (By alphabetical order)
Ø BOAT REFUGEE FOUNDATION The Boat Refugee Foundation is a Dutch NGO working at detecting small boats in distress and rescuing migrants and refugees on board. They notably assist people in distress in the waters between Italy and Libya.
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Ø JUGEND RETTET Jugend Rettet is an NGO from Berlin. Its goal is to save people at risk of drowning in the Mediterranean. Operations are conducted with the Juventa, a ship that sails under Dutch flag. This ship was seized in August 2017 after unfounded suspicion of cooperation with migrant smugglers.
Ø LIFELINE Rescue Boat Lifeline, a Service club based in Dresden, has been operating in the Central Mediterranean since autumn 2016. In June 2018, the Lifeline (with 239 migrants on board) was in the media as one of the ships being forbidden to enter an Italian harbor. Claus-Peter Reisch is the Captain of the Search and Rescue Ship “Lifeline”.
Ø MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES INTERNATIONAL Médecins sans frontières provides medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare everywhere in the World. Their actions are guided by medical ethics and the principles of impartiality, independence and neutrality. MSF plays a critical role in assisting migrants and refugees arriving by boat in the Mediterranean.
Ø MOAS Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) is an NGO based in Malta, saving lives at sea. MOAS was founded after 366 migrants drowned near the Italian island of Lampedusa in October 2013. MOAS' staff includes Search and Rescue (SAR) professionals and maritime officers, international humanitarian experts, security professionals and journalists.
Ø PROACTIVA OPEN ARMS Proactiva Open Arms is a Spanish NGO devoted to search and rescue (SAR) at sea. Set up in October 2015, it carried out its first rescue action that same month from its base on the Greek island of Lesbos. As well as maintaining a permanent base on Lesbos, the NGO carries out its rescue operations and awareness raising programmes from three ships: Astral, Golfo Azzurro and Open Arms. The NGO has received several awards, including the European Citizen's Prize awarded by the European Parliament in 2016 the H.E.R.O. Award for Outstanding Team Contribution to a Maritime SAR Operation. The founder of the NGO is Oscar Camps.
Ø PROEM-AID Proem-aid is an NGO of emergency professionals working as volunteers since December 2015 in the South east of Lesbos and, since September 2017, in the central Mediterranean, rescuing people in distress at the sea. Their teams consist of firefighters, lifeguards and health professional who rotate every fifteen days. SMH-Maydayterraneo is also operating with the rescue boat ”Aita Mari” in the Central Mediterranean as of October 2018
Ø SAVE THE CHILDREN The NGO Save the Children has operated a ship, the Vos Hestia, rescuing more than 10,000 migrants in the Mediterranean Sea.
Ø SEA-EYE Sea-Eye is rescuing people in distress in the Mediterranean Sea. With their vessel, a refurbished fishing boat, they search for those in distress in the southern Mediterranean.
PE628.016v01-00 10/15 CM\1162428EN.docx EN Ø SEA-WATCH : Civil sea rescue of people in flight Sea-Watch is an NGO that conducts civil search and rescue operations in the Central Mediterranean. Sea-Watch provides emergency relief capacities, and advocates for EU rescue operations and legal migration routes and addressing root causes of migration.
Ø SOS MEDITERRANEE SOS Mediterranée is a European, maritime humanitarian organization acting in the Mediterranean. It was founded by European citizens who chartered the rescue vessel Aquarius. Their headquarters are located in Berlin (Germany), Marseilles (France), Palermo (Italy) and Geneva (Switzerland).
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Oleg Sentsov
Nominated by the Group of the European People's Party (Christian Democrats)
Oleg Sentsov is a Ukrainian film director, born in 1976. He was detained on 10 May 2014 in Simferopol, Crimea, and convicted to 20 years of imprisonment in a tight security penal colony by a Russian court on charges of plotting terrorist acts against Russian "de facto" rule in Crimea. Human rights watchdog Amnesty International has described the court process as "an unfair trial before a military court". Oleg Sentsov has not recognised his guilt. He is in custody since 1587 days (13.09.2018). As of 14th May this year Oleg Sentsov is on hunger strike. His protest is lasting over 100 days. His health is fragile and his life is effectively in danger.
Oleg Sentsov is an innocent man. He had the courage, like many others, to oppose the illegal and forced annexation of part of his country by its belligerent neighbour. First such case in Europe after World War II. The Russian invasion and annexation of the Crimean peninsula, which was a blatant violation of international law, Russian international and bilateral commitments. He has been sentenced to long imprisonment because he believed in the supremacy of law and values, over brute force and deception. This makes him a prisoner of conscience. Continuing his hunger strike for over 100 days now, Oleg Sentsov has also become a powerful symbol of the fate of the approximately 70 Ukrainian citizens illegally arrested and convicted to long prison sentences by the Russian occupation forces in the Crimean peninsula after its annexation.
By supporting Oleg Sentsov we stay true to our own convictions to universal principles of democracy, human rights, rule of law and freedom of thought. Freedom of thought is the worst nightmare for all breeds of dictators and authoritarian regimes halting them from controlling their people and hence a powerful weapon to oppose them. We should not allow freedom and hope to die in silence.
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Mary WAGNER
Nominated by Marek Jurek and 41 other Members
Mary Wagner is a Canadian activist that has been imprisoned, whereas she only tried to talk to women entering an abortion clinic and was giving each one a rose. Her case gathered international attention in 2011 and she is known worldwide as a prisoner of conscience.
Not only did she inspire many people to save women and their babies from tragedy, but she also became a hero of humanity who is now a global voice of unborn children in fight for their human rights. She spent almost five long years in jail for her peaceful efforts to save women and children from the violence of abortion.
We believe that Mary Wagner is a perfect candidate for the prize as she is a persistent defender of fundamental human rights. Despite being subdued by many, she has never ceased to safeguard the rights of those who cannot speak for themselves.
Biography Mary Wagner was born in 1974 in Nanaimo and grew up in Tsawwassen, British Columbia. She comes from a large Christian family, graduated from English and Roman Studies at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.
Mary Wagner has been imprisoned over a dozen of times for attempting to save Canadian mothers and babies from the scourge of abortion, accused of “disturbing the business” of an abortion clinic in Toronto, where she tried to talk to women entering the clinic and gave each a rose. She remained in prison because she refused to agree to a bail condition that she stay away from abortion clinics. Her case gathered international attention in 2011 when a judge had said to Mary in court: “you are wrong and your God is wrong!”. This was the most widely read pro-life internet story in the world in 2011.
She was inspired by her fellow Canadian pro-life advocate Linda Gibbons, who spent 11
CM\1162428EN.docx 13/15 PE628.016v01-00 EN years in jail for defending the unborn in a peaceful way. Mary spent more than four years in jail becoming an internationally known prisoner of conscience.
In 2012 together with Linda Gibbons she was awarded the Diamond Jubilee Medal of Honour which is one of the highest civilian awards in Canada, approved despite her four criminal convictions then on her record, recommended by a Member of Parliament describing two women as heroines of humanity who try to save babies and women from tragedy.
Never complaining about her stay in jail, Wagner sees it as place to serve. “There are many women there, about 80 percent, who aborted their babies,” she said. Wagner explained that they always try to help them in any possible way, but especially by offering spiritual assistance and advice.
For several years, more and more people have been supporting Wagner by sending letters to her in prison, picketing by the Canadian Embassies and petitioning Canadian judges and the Canadian government for clemency. The Christmas Postcard Campaign organised by the Canadian national pro-life group went international and Mary received thousands of positive greetings from throughout the world.
Petitions of support, undersigned by tens of thousands of citizens, were organised by Canadian Campaign Life Coalition, International Right to Life Federation, Right to Life Foundation, Ordo Iuris, CitizenGO, One Of Us foundation and the Brotherhood of Small Feets.
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Nasser Zefzafi
Nominated by the Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left and Marie-Christine Vergiat, Kati Piri, Judith Sargentini and 39 other Members
Since the end of October 2016 and the death of fishmonger Mohsin Fikri, crushed in a dumpster while the authorities seized his goods, the Rif region (Morocco) is boiling. Almost every day, people are protesting against socio-economic inequalities for almost two years and are violently repressed by the Moroccan authorities. More than 2,000 people have been imprisoned and some have been heavily sentenced (up to 20 years in prison) including minors.
It was during these events that Nasser Zefzafi became the leader of the Hirak, this social movement fighting against corruption, oppression and abuse of power and claiming for dignity, equality and social justice.
Nasser was arrested on 29 May 2017 and sentenced to 20 years in prison at the end of June 2018 for "conspiracy to bring security to the state". Throughout his detention, he suffers, like many others, physical, mental and moral tortures.
On 21 August, King Mohammed VI has pardoned 188 activists Hirak, but not Nasser Zefzafi. From 30 August until 6 September, Nasser was on hunger strike to denounce his conditions of detention.
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