Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissentis an award established in 2012 by the New York City-basedHuman Rights Foundation(HRF). According to HRF PresidentThor Halvorssen,the prize recognizes individuals "who engage in creative dissent, exhibiting courage and creativity to challenge injustice and live in truth".[1]
Named in honor ofCzechdissident playwright and politicianVáclav Havel,who died in December 2011, the award was founded with the help of his widow,Dagmar Havlová.[2]Googleco-founderSergei BrinandPayPalco-founderPeter Thielprovided part of the prize's funding.[3]
Recipients
edit| Year | Laureates | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Chinese dissidentAi Weiwei,Burmese democracy activistAung San Suu Kyi,and Saudi Arabian women's rights activistManal al-Sharif[3] | Presented on 9 May inOslo,Norway by theOslo Freedom Forum.[4]After al-Sharif's speech was viewed hundreds of thousands of times onYouTube,she lost her job as an Internet security consultant atSaudi Aramco,the national oil company of Saudi Arabia.[5]PresenterGarry Kasparovstated that the three awardees had "shown not only courage, but passion and humor, that exposes the inhumanity ofdictatorship".[4] |
| 2013 | Syrian cartoonistAli Farzat,North Korean democracy activistPark Sang Hak,and Cuban civil society group theLadies in White | Presented on 15 May by the Oslo Freedom Forum.[6]Berta Soler,leader of the Ladies in White, received the award on her first journey outside of her nativeCuba,while also receiving theSakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.[7] |
| 2014 | Turkish protester and performance artistErdem Gunduz,Russian punk rock protest groupPussy Riot,andTibetandocumentary filmmakerDhondup Wangchen[8] | |
| 2015 | Sudanese nonviolent resistance movementGirifna,Indonesian stand-up comedianSakdiyah Ma'ruf,and Cuban graffiti artist and activistEl Sexto.[8] | |
| 2016 | Iranian cartoonistAtena Farghadani,Russian performance artistPetr Pavlenskyand Uzbek photojournalistUmida Akhmedova.[9] | Pavlensky's prize was withdrawn by the Human Rights Foundation after he announced his intention to dedicate the award and prize money to the "Primorsky Partisans,"a group of six then-teenagers in theRussian Far Eastwho in 2010 declared a "guerrilla war"on police to" protest corruption and lawlessness and were given lengthy prison sentences for the murder of three officers, robbery, and theft ".[10]In a letter, the Foundation said that the revocation was "unfortunate and unprecedented" and that those who have "advocated the use of violence as a valid method to fight government oppression" are barred from receiving the award.[10] |
| 2017 | Zimbabwean artist and activist Silvanos Mudzvova, Bahraini poet and activistAyat Al-Qurmeziand Venezuelan satirical websiteEl Chigüire Bipolar.[11] | Presented on 24 May by the Oslo Freedom Forum. |
| 2018 | Emmanuel Jal,Belarus Free TheatreandMai Khôi. | Presented on 30 May by the Oslo Freedom Forum. |
| 2019 | Rap Against Dictatorship(Thairappers),[12]Rayma Suprani,Venezuelan cartoonist;Ramy Essam,Egyptian musician.[13] | Presented on 29 May at the Oslo Freedom Forum. |
| 2020 | Chinese artistBadiucao,Saudi vloggerOmar Abdulazizand Rwandan gospel singerKizito Mihigo.[14] | Presented online on 25 September during the Virtual Oslo Freedom Forum. |
| 2022 | Professional basketball player and human rights advocateEnes Kanter Freedom, Iranian artist projectPaykanArtCar,and Ukrainian-born Russian journalistMarina Ovsyannikova.[15] |
Enes Kanter Freedom received the prize for raising awareness of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s human rights abuses, PaykanArtCar for inspiring diaspora Iranian artists to advocate for human rights in Iran, and Marina Ovsyannikova for staging a protest against theRussian invasion of Ukraineduring a news broadcast of Russian state TV. Presented on 25 May by the Oslo Freedom Forum. |
| 2024 | Iranian rapperToomaj Salehi,Uyghur poet filmmaker and activistTahir Hamut Izgil,and Venezuelan pianistGabriela Montero.[16] | Presented on 22 May by the Oslo Freedom Forum. |
See also
edit
References
edit- ^"The Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent".Human Rights Foundation. 11 April 2012. Archived fromthe originalon 17 May 2014.Retrieved1 August2014.
- ^"Inaugural Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent awarded to Ai Weiwei, Manal al-Sharif, and Aung San Suu Kyi".HavelPrize.org. 2 May 2012. Archived fromthe originalon 8 May 2012.Retrieved16 May2012.
- ^ab"A Prize for Creative Dissent".The Wall Street Journal.13 May 2012.Retrieved16 May2012.
- ^ab"Ceremony: Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent".Oslo Freedom Forum. 9 May 2012. Archived fromthe originalon 16 May 2012.Retrieved16 May2012.
- ^Paul Aarts & Carolien Roelants,Saudi Arabia: A Kingdom in Peril(Oxford University Press,2015), p. 76.
- ^"Recipients".The Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent.Archived fromthe originalon June 30, 2013.RetrievedJune 20,2013.
- ^Tamaya, Juan."Dissidents say they are returning to Cuba reenergized".The Miami Herald.Archived fromthe originalon June 30, 2013.RetrievedJune 20,2013.
- ^ab"Václav Havel International Prize for Creative Dissent".Human Rights Foundation: The Václav Havel Prize for Creative Dissent.RetrievedJune 8,2015.
- ^Foundation, Human Rights."2016 Havel Prize Awarded to Atena Farghadani, Petr Pavlensky, and Umida Akhmedova | News | Human Rights Foundation".Human Rights Foundation.Archived fromthe originalon 2016-06-05.Retrieved2016-05-27.
- ^abTom Balmforth,Russian Protest Artist Stripped Of Havel Prize Over Support For 'Partisans',Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty(July 8, 2016).
- ^"El Václav Havel no es un chiste para El Chigüire Bipolar".El Nacional.21 May 2017.Retrieved22 May2017.
- ^Charuvastra, Teeranai (27 May 2019)."Anti-Junta Rappers Awarded Creative Dissent Prize".Khaosod English.Retrieved31 May2019.
- ^"2019 Oslo Freedom Forum Program".Oslo Freedom Forum.Retrieved31 May2019.
- ^"2020 Havel Prize Laureates from China, Saudi Arabia, and Rwanda Announced".Human Rights Foundation.17 September 2020.
- ^"HRF Announces the 2022 Havel Prize Laureates".Human Rights Foundation.3 May 2022.
- ^Adams, Vasilia (2024-05-22)."Announcing the 2024 Havel Prize Laureates from Iran, the Uyghur Region, and Venezuela".Human Rights Foundation.Retrieved2024-06-06.