The European Parliament has awarded this year's Sakharov Prize for Democracy and Human Rights to the Ukrainian people.
The Ukrainian people, represented by their President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other elected representatives, as well as civil society, are receiving the prize for their current struggles and suffering, Parliament Speaker Roberta Metsola said in Strasbourg on Wednesday.
“Ukrainians have been heroically defending their lives, their families and their freedom for months.
They are also risking their lives for Europe and the values we all believe in, for peace and democracy," she said.
The imprisoned Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and the Colombian Truth Commission were also nominated for the award.
The decision on an award winner is made in several stages.
After MEPs and their groups have proposed candidates, the foreign affairs and development committees select three finalists.
The Conference of Presidents, made up of the leaders of the political groups and the Speaker of the Parliament, finally selects a winner.
The award ceremony will take place in Strasbourg on December 14th.
The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought has been awarded by the EU Parliament since 1988 to personalities and institutions who are particularly committed to human rights and the protection of minorities, respect for international law and freedom of thought.
The €50,000 award is named after the Soviet physicist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Andrei Sakharov (1921-1989).
The most prominent laureates include former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan (1938-2018) and South Africa's former President and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nelson Mandela (1918-2013).
In 2021 the award went to the Russian opposition and anti-corruption activist Alexej Navalnyj, in 2020 to the democratic opposition in Belarus.