display
Stockholm (dpa) - In Stockholm, the so-called Alternative Nobel Prizes were awarded on Thursday evening.
Only one of the four winners was able to receive the award in person: the human rights activist Ales Belyazki from Belarus.
The US civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson and the activist Lottie Cunningham Wren from Nicaragua were unable to attend the ceremony in Stockholm due to the corona and were switched on via video.
Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotudeh had to go back to prison on Thursday and sent her thanks in an audio message.
The Right Livelihood Award, commonly known as the Alternative Nobel Prize, is presented each year by the Right Livelihood Foundation.
It honors people who work for peace and a more just and sustainable world, often at high risk.
This also applies to this year's award winners.
"Everyone is fighting against the threat to democracy and giving others the courage to stand up," said Ole von Uexküll, the foundation's executive director.
He was shocked that the Iranian Sotudeh had to be arrested again shortly before the award.
display
In her previously recorded acceptance speech, the lawyer said the award was a great honor for her.
"Under these difficult conditions, he gives me and my family new energy to continue on my path," her words were translated.
Sotudeh has stood up as a lawyer for political activists and for women who have taken off their headscarves in public to protest against the Iranian legal situation.
The Iranian regime regards her as an enemy of the state and has been sentenced to more than 30 years in prison.
In her speech, the lawyer called for attention to be drawn to the plight of all political prisoners in Iran.
Ales Belyazki, who with his organization Wesna is fighting for the realization of democracy and human rights in Belarus, said, according to the translation, that he sees the award as moral support and a sign of solidarity in the democratic world for the Belarusian people.
"This is a clear signal to the Belarusian authorities that the world will never accept the massive human rights violations that are currently taking place in Belarus," he said.
With the award of the American Stevenson, the Right Livelihood Foundation drew attention to the racism debate in the USA.
"I live in the country with the most arrests in the world," said Stevenson.
The civil rights attorney has saved numerous innocent convicts from the death penalty.
"I'm working against a system that treats you better when you're rich and guilty than when you're poor and innocent," Stevenson said in a Montgomery column.
display
Lottie Cunningham Wren stressed that she was accepting the award on behalf of the indigenous peoples of Nicaragua, whose territory is threatened by armed settlers.
“I went for a long time with my people, with those who are hungry and thirsty for justice, who suffer from forced relocations, who suffer from violence, destruction of the environment or violation of their fundamental rights.
I am here for you. "
This year, 182 nominations from 71 countries were considered for the Right Livelihood Award.
The prize money is one million Swedish kronor (around 98,000 euros) for each winner and is intended to help them continue their work.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 201203-99-563680 / 2