Selected Online Reading on Sakharov Prize Laureates: and their Causes (2016-2020)

The democratic opposition in Belarus - 2020, Belarus

Led by brave women and other civil society and political figures, the Coordination Council has united the Belarussians fighting for democracy in Europe’s last dictatorship.

The 2020 Sakharov Prize was awarded to the democratic opposition of Belarus represented by the Coordination Council, an initiative of brave women - Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Svetlana Alexievich, Maryia Kalesnikava, Volha Kavalkova and Veranika Tsapkala, and political and civil society figures - Siarhei Tsikhanouski, Ales Bialiatski, Siarhei Dyleuski, Stsiapan Putsila and Mikola Statkevich.

[...] During the ceremony, exceptionally held in Brussels, President Sassoli said: "The whole world is aware of what is happening in your country. We see your courage. We see the courage of women. We see your suffering. We see the unspeakable abuses. We see the violence. Your aspiration and determination to live in a democratic country inspires us."

Accepting the prize, the main opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said: "Each and every Belarusian who takes part in the peaceful protest against violence and lawlessnes is a hero. Each of them is an example of courage, compassion, and dignity."

2020 Award Ceremony

Ilham Tohti - 2019, China

Ilham Tohti is an economics professor and an advocate for China’s Uyghur minority, more than a million of whom are detained in internment camps.

For more than two decades, he has worked tirelessly to foster dialogue and understanding between Uyghurs and Han Chinese. In September 2014, Tohti was sentenced to life in prison for his activism following a two-day show trial. He remains a voice of moderation and reconciliation in spite of what he has suffered.

Jewher Ilham, Tohti's daughter who is exiled in the United States, accepted the prize on her father's behalf at the ceremony in Strasbourg. Addressing a full plenary chamber, Jewher advocated for the Uyghur cause. 'For him [Ilham Tohti], the problem was clear: workers were being denied basic rights, the right to believe what we believe, the right to worship the way we want to worship, the right to think. (...) This is not about fighting China. This is about protecting human rights.'

2019 Award Ceremony

Oleg Sentsov - 2018, Ukraine

A Ukrainian filmmaker imprisoned in Russia, Oleg Sentsov is a source of inspiration for those who face oppression, and is a symbol of the struggle for the release of political prisoners held in Russia and around the world.

"Through his courage and determination, by putting his life in danger, the film maker Oleg Sentsov has become a symbol of the struggle for the release of political prisoners held in Russia and around the world. By awarding him the Sakharov Prize, the European Parliament is expressing its solidarity with him and his cause. We ask that he be released immediately. His struggle reminds us that it is our duty to defend human rights everywhere in the world and under all circumstances", said EP President Tajani

In November 2019, two months after his release, Sentsov accepted his Sakharov award at a ceremony in the European Parliament in Strasbourg. He received the prize 'not as a personal honour, but as a prize to all Ukrainian political prisoners that have ever been in Russian prisons'.

2018 Award Ceremony

2019 Award Ceremony

The democratic opposition in Venezuela - 2017, Venezuela

In 2017, the political opponents of the Venezuelan Government, including the National Assembly and all political prisoners, were awarded the prize for their continuing bravery in the pursuit of freedom and prosperity in Venezuela.

The Sakharov Prize was granted to the democratic opposition in Venezuela, that is, to the National Assembly (represented by Julio Borges), and to all political prisoners listed by Foro Penal Venezolano (Venezuelan Penal Forum) and represented by Leopoldo López, Antonio Ledezma, Daniel Ceballos, Yon Goicoechea, Lorent Saleh, Alfredo Ramos and Andrea González.

2017 Award Ceremony

Nadia Murad and Lamiya Aji Bashar – 2016, Iraq

Nadia Murad Basee Taha and Lamiya Aji Bashar are survivors of sexual enslavement by Islamic State (IS) and have become spokespersons for women afflicted by the terrorist group’s campaign of sexual violence. They are also public advocates for the Yazidi community in Iraq, a religious minority that has been the subject of a genocidal campaign by IS militants.

They are both from Kocho, one of the villages near Sinjar, Iraq. On 3 August 2014, Islamic State militants slaughtered all the males in the village. Young women, including Aji Bashar, Murad and their sisters, were abducted by Islamic State militants and forced into sex slavery.

In November 2014, Murad managed to escape with the help of a neighbouring family who smuggled her out of the IS-controlled area, allowing her to make her way to a refugee camp in Northern Iraq and then to Germany. A year later in December 2015, Murad addressed the UN Security Council’s first-ever session on human trafficking with a powerful speech about her experience. In September 2016, she became the first UNODC Goodwill Ambassador for the Dignity of Survivors of Human Trafficking, participating in global and local advocacy initiatives to raise awareness around the plight of the countless victims of trafficking.

Aji Bashar tried to flee several times before finally escaping in April with the help of her family, who paid local smugglers. While fleeing, a landmine exploded, killing two of her acquaintances while leaving her injured and almost blind. She managed to escape and was eventually sent for medical treatment in Germany, where she was reunited with her surviving siblings. Since her recovery Aji Bashar has been active in raising awareness of the plight of the Yazidi community and continues to help women and children who were victims of IS enslavement and atrocities.

2016 Award Ceremony