Palestinian, Filipino and Mozambican activists and a London research agency given human rights award
The Right Livelihood Awards are presented by Ole von Uexkull, CEO and member of the jury, during a news conference at Culture House in Stockholm, Sweden on Sept. 29, 2022. Credit: AP/Jessica Gow
STOCKHOLM — The Right Livelihood Award was awarded Thursday to three activists from the Palestinian territories, the Philippines and Mozambique and to a U.K. pioneering research agency who “have each made a profound impact on their communities and the global stage.”
“Their unwavering commitment to speaking out against forces of oppression and exploitation, while strictly adhering to non-violent methods, resonates far beyond their communities,” the Stockholm-based foundation said about the laureates. It considered 176 nominees from 72 countries this year.
Issa Amro, a human rights activist in the occupied West Bank and his group, Youth Against Settlements, were awarded the prize “for their steadfast non-violent resistance to Israel’s illegal occupation, promoting Palestinian civic action through peaceful means.”
In the Philippines, Indigenous activist Joan Carling was cited “for raising Indigenous voices in the face of the global ecological breakdown and her leadership in defending people, lands and culture.”
Anabela Lemos, a Mozambican environmental activist and director of Justiça Ambiental!, was honored for “empowering communities to stand up for their right to say no to exploitative mega-projects and demand environmental justice.” It is the first time the award went to Mozambique.
Based at University of London, Forensic Architecture was cited “for pioneering digital forensic methods to ensure justice and accountability for victims and survivors of human and environmental rights violations.”
Created in 1980, the annual Right Livelihood Award honors efforts that the prize founder, Swedish-German philanthropist Jakob von Uexkull, felt were being ignored by the Nobel Prizes. To date, 198 laureates from 77 countries have received the distinction.
FILE _ Palestinian activist Issa Amro, center, stands with Israeli activists in the embattled West Bank city of Hebron, Dec. 2, 2022. Credit: AP/Maya Alleruzzo
“The 2024 laureates demonstrate the power of non-violent resistance and truth-telling, placing decision-making into the hands of local communities,” said Ole von Uexkull, the nephew of the prize founder and the organization's executive director.
Previous winners include Ukrainian human rights defender Oleksandra Matviichuk, Congolese surgeon Denis Mukwege and Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. Matviichuk and Mukwege received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022 and 2018, respectively.
The 2024 laureates will be given their awards on Dec. 4 in Stockholm. The size of the prize amount was not announced. The foundation said that “the award comes with long-term support to highlight and expand laureates’ work.”
