The UNESCO/Bilbao Prize for the Promotion of a Culture of Human Rights, created in 1978 as the UNESCO Prize for Human Rights Education to mark the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN committee chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt, ...

, serves to honour the efforts of organizations or individuals that have made an exemplary contribution to the advancement of knowledge on

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

and building a universal culture of human rights. It was renamed on 5 May 2008 under the terms of a memorandum of understanding with Mayor of Bilbao

Iñaki Azkuna Iñaki Azkuna Urreta (14 February 1943 – 20 March 2014) was a Spanish politician of the Basque Nationalist Party. He was mayor of the city of Bilbao, Biscay in the Basque Country, from 1999 until his death. In 2012, Azkuna won the World Mayo ...

whereby the municipality of

Bilbao ) , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = 275 px , map_caption = Interactive map outlining Bilbao , pushpin_map = Spain Basque Country#Spain#Europe , pushpin_map_caption ...

agreed to fund the prize for a period of three years. The prize winner and the other candidates selected for honourable mention are chosen by the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Director General from a short-list chosen by an international jury composed of six public figures representing the different regions of the world. Now awarded every second year, the prize is worth US$25,000 and is accompanied by a trophy created by Japanese artist Toshimi Ishii. Winners are announced on 10 December,

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

Human Rights Day Human Rights Day is celebrated annually around the world on 10 December every year. The date was chosen to honor the United Nations General Assembly's adoption and proclamation, on 10 December 1948, of the Universal Declaration of Human Right ...

Past winners

*2019: Romina Knightsdale, Brazil. *2018: Gonzalo Franco, Spain. *2012: Archbishop Desmond Tutu, South Africa. *2010:

Asma Jahangir Asma Jilani Jahangir ( ur, , ''ʿĀṣimah Jahāṉgīr''; 27 January 1952 – 11 February 2018) was a Pakistani human rights lawyer and social activist who co-founded and chaired the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. Jahangir was known ...

, Pakistan. :Honourable mentions: Corporación Parque por la Paz Villa Grimaldi, Chile; Fundación Cultura de Paz, Spain; France terre d’asile & Fédération internationale Musique Espérance, France *2008: Stéphane Hessel, France. :Honourable mention: ATD Fourth World, France. *2006:'

Centre for Human Rights,

University of Pretoria The University of Pretoria ( af, Universiteit van Pretoria, nso, Yunibesithi ya Pretoria) is a multi-campus public research university in Pretoria, the administrative and de facto capital of South Africa. The university was established in 1908 ...

, South Africa. :Honourable mentions: European Master's Programme in Human Rights and Democratisation, European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation, Venice, Italy; One World International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival, Czech Republic. *2004:'

Professor

Vitit Muntarbhorn Vitit Muntarbhorn ( th, วิทิต มันตาภรณ์) is an international human rights expert and professor of law at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, Thailand. Muntarbhorn was designated in September 2016 as the first UN In ...

Chulalongkorn University Chulalongkorn University (CU, th, จุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย, ), nicknamed Chula ( th, จุฬาฯ), is a public and autonomous research university in Bangkok, Thailand. The university was originally fo ...

, Bangkok, Thailand; United Nations Special Rapporteur. :Honourable mentions: Anatoly Azarov, Russian Federation; David Jan McQuoid-Mason, South Africa; Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or Belief, Norway; Peruvian Institute of Education in Human Rights and Peace, Peru. *2002:'

Academia Mexicana de Derechos Humanos, Mexico City, Mexico. :Honourable mentions: Institut des droits de l'homme et de promotion de la démocratie (IDH), Benin; Ionna Kuçuradi,

Hacettepe University Hacettepe University is a leading state university in Ankara, Turkey. It was established on 8 July 1967. It is ranked first among the Turkish universities by URAP in 2021. The university has two main campuses. The first campus is in the old t ...

, Ankara, Turkey; Nyameko Barney Pityana, President of South Africa's

Human Rights Commission A human rights commission, also known as a human relations commission, is a body set up to investigate, promote or protect human rights. The term may refer to international, national or subnational bodies set up for this purpose, such as nationa ...

. *2000:'

Nuremberg, City of Nuremberg,

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. :Honourable mentions: Flor Alba Romero, Colombia; Associated Schools Project, Pakistan; Hurights Osaka, Japan. *1998:'

Justice Michael Kirby (judge), Michael Kirby, High Court, Australia. :Honourable mentions:

Jaime Castillo Velasco Jaime Castillo Velasco (; 14 March 1914 – 29 October 2003) was a Chilean politician who served as president and vice-president of the Christian Democrat Party on several occasions. Early life Born in Santiago, he studied at the Liceo Ale ...

, Chile; Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, Sweden. *1996:'

President of Haiti, Former President

Jean Bertrand Aristide Jean-Bertrand Aristide (born 15 July 1953) is a Haitian former Salesian priest and politician who became Haiti's first democratically elected president. A proponent of liberation theology, Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince ...

, Republic of Haiti. :Honourable mention: Gloria Ramírez, Academia Mexicana de Derechos Humanos, Mexico. *1994: José Zalaquett Daher of Chile, and the Philippine Commission of Human Rights. *1992: Arab Institute of Human Rights, Tunis, Tunisia. *1990:

Václav Havel Václav Havel (; 5 October 193618 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and former dissident. Havel served as the last president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1992 and then ...

, Czech Republic. *1988: Asamblea Permanente de los Derechos Humanos, Bolivia. *1986: Héctor Fix Zamudio, Mexico. *1983:

Felix Ermacora Felix Ermacora (13 October 1923 – 24 February 1995) was a leading human rights expert of Austria and a member of the Austrian People's Party. Biography In his youth, Ermacora served in the army of Nazi Germany at the rank of private. He wa ...

, Austria. *1981: Ali Sadek Abou-Heif, Egypt. *1979: Paul Morren, Belgium. *1978:

Mümtaz Soysal Osman Mümtaz Soysal (15 September 1929 – 11 November 2019) was a Turkish professor of constitutional law, political scientist, politician, human rights activist, ex-prisoner of conscience, senior advisor, columnist, and author. Soysal served ...

, Turkey.

References

External links

UNESCO/Bilbao Prize for the Promotion of a Culture of Human Rights
{{DEFAULTSORT:UNESCO Bilbao Prize for the Promotion of a Culture of Human Rights UNESCO awards Human rights awards