MEDIA ADVISORY - 2015 Lantos Prize Laureates Announced

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 27, 2015

MEDIA CONTACT
Kate Ray, Bluelight Strategies, kate@bluelightstrategies.com, 202-265-3000

 
 

Kadeer, Manji, Hirsi Ali, To Be Named 2015 Lantos Prize Laureates
Three Women of Muslim Heritage to Receive Distinguished Lantos Award

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice announced today that it will award the 2015 Lantos Human Rights Prize to three courageous female leaders; Rebiya Kadeer, Irshad Manji, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali. These three laureates are fearless leaders, reformers and rebels who have been willing to defy social and cultural norms to speak out against human rights abuses. The award ceremony will be held in Washington, DC on December 10, 2015. It will be open to the press and coverage is invited.

“The Lantos Foundation is proud to honor Rebiya Kadeer, Irshad Manji, and Ayaan Hirsi Ali for their courage and towering moral strength,” said Katrina Lantos Swett, president of the Lantos Foundation. “All three laureates have faced down personal danger to stand up for the vulnerable and persecuted. They have eloquently advocated for the fundamental freedoms that are the sole guarantors of the rights of all.”

Rebiya Kadeer is an internationally recognized human rights leader who serves as President of the World Uyghur Congress and has earned the title of the “Mother of All Uyghurs” for her tireless advocacy for the rights of the oppressed Muslims of China. Kadeer rose from poverty to become one of the most successful entrepreneurs in China and has used her wealth to lift up other Uyghur women through the 1,000 Mothers movement and other philanthropic endeavors. Her peaceful struggle for the dignity and basic rights of the Uyghur people led to her six year imprisonment by the Chinese government. Since her exile to the United States, Kadeer has become the recognized global leader of the Uyghur people and an inspiring example of a faithful Muslim woman who leads her people.

Irshad Manji is a bestselling author, award winning documentary film maker, and educator who has been a fearless advocate for a reformist approach to Islam. Manji is the founder of the Moral Courage Project, which seeks to inspire individuals to exhibit the moral courage required to do the right thing in the face of fear. Manji has modeled this integrity and bravery in her own life. In the face of repeated death threats, she has refused to abandon the faith she loves while eloquently arguing for reforms that will open a path towards reconciliation between faith and freedom. Irshad has received numerous awards, and has been glowingly described as gutsy, audacious, bold, and brilliant by voices ranging from the New York Times, to the Jarkarta Post, to Oprah Winfrey.

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a survivor of childhood abuse and violence, including female genital mutilation (FGM), fled a forced marriage and sought asylum in the Netherlands. There, she completed her education and rose from being a maid and translator to an elected member of the Dutch Parliament. In 2004, Theo Van Gogh, her collaborator on a film critical of the treatment of women in Islam, was assassinated in broad daylight and Hirsi Ali was forced into hiding in the face of death threats. She then moved to the United States and has since been an outspoken opponent of child marriage, FGM and honor violence. She established the AHA Foundation to combat these abuses against girls and women and to argue unflinchingly that no culture, tradition, or religion can be permitted to justify violence against women or girls. Hirsi Ali is also a determined defender of liberal democracy and has been hailed for her intellect, candor, and courage in confronting inconvenient and uncomfortable truths. She is a bestselling author, and has been named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by TIME magazine. 

The Lantos Foundation established the Lantos Human Rights Prize in 2009 to honor and bring attention to heroes of the human rights movement. It is awarded annually to an individual or individuals that best exemplify the Foundation’s mission, namely to be a vital voice standing up for the values of decency, dignity, freedom and justice in every corner of the world. Former recipients of the Lantos Prize include His Holiness the Dalai Lama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Israeli President Shimon Peres, Nobel Laureate Elie Wiesel, Rwandan humanitarian Paul Rusesabagina and Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng.

The prize also serves to commemorate the late Congressman Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor ever elected to the U.S. Congress and a prominent advocate for human rights during his nearly three decades as a U.S. Representative.

Additional details about the award ceremony will be announced shortly.

For more information, call the Lantos Foundation at 603-226-3636. Press inquiries should be directed to 202.265.3000. 


                                                                                      

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Lantos Foundation International Advisory Committee Co-Chair, delivers relief supplies to Syrian refugees

Annette Lantos Tillemann Dick , Co-Chair of the Lantos Foundation's International Advisory Committee, recently returned from a humanitarian mission to Hungary delivering relief  supplies to thousands of Syrian families in refugee camps.  Mrs. Lantos Tillemann-Dick joined forces with the Tom Lantos Institute, Airline Ambassadors, and the international humanitarian services of the the LDS church. Her efforts are in the best tradition of the late Congressman Lantos who was indefatigable in fighting for the dignity and rights of persecuted people in every corner of the globe.    

Desperate China crushing its own people: USA Today. By: Chen Guangcheng & Katrina Lantos Swett

"Since July 10, Chinese authorities have been detaining human rights lawyers and activists in unprecedented numbers. An estimated 250 have been taken into custody. Police and thugs are grabbing people from their homes and offices, and even from restaurants, without warning or rationale. They are being interrogated, threatened and accused of fabricated crimes. Many are being held without access to family, friends, legal representation, or any other semblance of due process under the law."

Continue reading:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2015/09/24/china-xi-jinping-visit-obama-human-rights-lawyers-column/72671716/

Lantos Foundation Defends the American Tradition of No Religious Test for Office

The Lantos foundation is non-profit non-partisan organization and as such does not take positions on political candidates. However, as a human rights organization that seeks to advance the robust protection of freedom of religion, conscience, and belief, we feel it is important for us to speak out on the recent discussion of whether or not a Muslim American should hold the office of President of the United States. 

In many ways religious freedom is the well spring from which many of our other cherished human rights flow. Freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and freedom of association –all of these hinge upon a rights frame work that honors and upholds the fundamental right of freedom of religion. The framers of our constitution understood the importance of protecting the right of all citizens of whatever faith or belief to participate fully and equally in the life of our society. Not only is this belief enshrined in the first amendment to the Bill of Rights, but equally importantly it is spelled out in Article V Paragraph 3 of the Constitution. There it states with utter clarity that, “…no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.” 

At the time of America’s founding, such forward thinking and visionary ideas about religious freedom and equality were rare.  The subsequent centuries have borne out the wisdom of our founders in establishing a Republic where the separation of church and state, the full and free exercise of religion, and the equality of all before the law is robustly defended. In many ways this historically unique American formulation has been the key to our remarkable success as a society, and we have seen it emulated in constitutional charters and human rights documents around the globe. Furthermore, we can see the disastrous consequences in the form of religious repression and persecution, brutal sectarian violence, and instability in societies that fail to provide strong protection for this fundamental human right.

That is why it was so distressing to hear comments suggesting that a faithful Muslim would not be welcome to serve as President of the United States. Not only do these comments reflect a profound misunderstanding of the US Constitution and our national traditions, but they represent an egregious slander against the Muslim faith and against millions of patriotic Muslim American citizens. This is unacceptable.

We encourage all those who would seek the highest office in the land to live by and defend our first freedom –the freedom of religion, conscience, and belief. Furthermore, we would hope that in their communications and indeed in their conduct that they would seek to reflect our nation’s most honored values of liberty, justice and equality for all.

 

Lantos Foundation Supports the Call for Urgent Medical Evacuation of Likely Poisoned Russian Democracy Activist

The Lantos Foundation supports the request for an urgent medical evacuation of Russian political activist Vladimir Kara-Murza. Kara-Murza fell suddenly ill on May 27th and remains unconscious. It is widely suspected that he may have been a victim of poisoning.

Kara Murza has been a longtime member of Russia’s political opposition and it is believed he may have been targeted for attack following the release of a documentary film by Open Russia, a Russian civil society organization where Kara-Murza works as the coordinator. The film details allegations of rampant corruption and human rights abuses by the government of Chechen ruler Ramzan Kadyrov.

Mr. Kara-Murza’s wife, Evgenia Kara-Murza, issued the following statement asking for her husband’s evacuation;

“My husband Vladimir Kara-Murza suddenly fell ill on May 27, 2015, and was hospitalized in Moscow with symptoms of poisoning. In order to get an independent medical assessment of his condition I have requested an urgent medical evacuation to a medical center in Europe or Israel where full toxicology testing and treatment can be done. “

Lantos Foundation President, Katrina Lantos Swett, said;

“It is vital that Vladimir Kara-Murza be immediately evacuated to an appropriate medical facility where he can receive emergency treatment and where an independent evaluation of the circumstances leading to his mysterious collapse can be conducted. Far too many courageous political activists have lost their lives under suspicious circumstances in Russia. This brave man must not become the latest victim in an increasingly dangerous political environment. We call upon the Russian government to honor the request of Mr. Kara-Murza’s wife for his prompt evacuation to a medical facility in Europe.”

Three Organizations Salute Chinese Human Rights Activist

Lantos Foundation, Catholic University, and Witherspoon Institute Applaud New Memoir by Chen Guangcheng

Leaders at the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, The Catholic University of America, and the Witherspoon Institute offered their congratulations today to Chinese human rights activist Chen Guangcheng on the publication of his new memoir, The Barefoot Lawyer, released earlier this month by Henry Holt. The official launch of his book in Washington is scheduled for March 19 at the National Press Club

Chen has been affiliated with all three institutions since fall 2013.

The Barefoot Lawyer relates the events of Chen’s life, from his childhood to his struggles against the Chinese government. Blind since infancy, Chen became a self-trained “barefoot lawyer” who advocates for disabled persons and the interests of poor villagers in rural China, and against the brutal tactics used to enforce the state’s one-child policy, which include forced abortions and sterilizations.

As a result of his efforts, Chen was imprisoned for four years and illegally subjected to house arrest, before he eventually escaped on foot to the American embassy in Beijing. After his story made international news, Chen found asylum in the United States.

“Chen Guangcheng’s story is one of immense personal courage and conviction as well as a chilling reminder of the outrageous abuse and persecution endured by those who dare to advocate for fundamental human rights and justice in China,” said Katrina Lantos Swett, president of the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice. “Mr. Chen’s book will open the eyes of readers to some disturbing and inconvenient truths about China’s treatment of its brave reformers. This ‘blind and barefoot’ hero sees clearly and walks unafraid,” added Lantos Swett.

“This important book makes clear not only Chen's personal bravery against oppression, but it also reveals the systemic failure of human rights progress in China. Powerful and eye-opening book!” said Stephen Schneck, director of The Catholic University of America’s Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies.

“The Barefoot Lawyer is must reading for all who are concerned for the future of human rights and the rule of law, in China and everywhere else. It is a story that can make us all braver people,” said Matthew Franck, director of the Center on Religion and the Constitution, the Witherspoon Institute.

Since the fall of 2013, Chen Guangcheng has been a visiting fellow of Catholic University’s Institute for Policy Research & Catholic Studies, a distinguished senior fellow in human rights of the Witherspoon Institute and a senior distinguished advisor to the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice.  He has continued his activism on behalf of religious freedom, self-government for the people of Hong Kong, and the basic rights of the Chinese people. 

An author discussion and book signing for The Barefoot Lawyer is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 19 at the National Press Club (NPC). Lantos Swett, Schneck, and Franck are scheduled to attend the event. For more information about the NPC event, visit press.org/events/guangcheng. For more information about Chen’s affiliation with Catholic University, contact Mary McCarthy Hines in the Office of Public Affairs at cua-public-affairs@cua.edu or 202-319-5600.