The Human Rights Tulip () is an annual prize awarded by the
Dutch ministry of Foreign Affairs to a human rights defender or organisation who promotes and supports human rights in innovative ways. The Human Rights Tulip was established in 2007 and presented for the first time on 10 December 2008 and designed by the artist duo Adelheid and Huub Kortekaas.
The prize consists of a statuette and support worth €100.000 to assist the winning individual or organization to further develop and scale up their innovation.
The procedure of awarding the Human Rights Tulip starts with an open nominating procedure. The winner is selected by the Dutch minister of Foreign Affairs on the basis of public voting and the advice of an independent jury.
In October 2013, The Netherlands Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans decided to retain the award but to seek greater awareness for it.
In June 2014, the foreign ministry appointed the international development organisation
Hivos to run the selection process for the award. This partnership continued in 2015, when the shortlist of six candidates was composed of three gaining the most votes in a public voting process, and three more selected by the Foreign Ministry and Hivos.
Award winners
The 2008 prize winner was
Justine Masika Bihamba from
Goma
Goma is a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the North Kivu, North Kivu Province; it is located on the northern shore of Lake Kivu and shares borders with the Bukumu Chiefdo ...
in
North Kivu province in the
Democratic Republic of Congo. Her organisation, Women's Synergy for the Victims of Sexual Violence (Synergie des femmes pour les Victimes des violences Sexuelles – SFVS) has since 2002 been fighting the massive use of
sexual violence in the armed conflict in the east of the DRC.
The 2009 prize winner was
Shadi Sadr from Tehran,
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
, a women's rights activist and campaigner against
stoning as an execution method.
The 2010 prize winner was
Bertha Oliva from
Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Ocean at the Gulf of Fonseca, ...
, for her long struggle for the rights of relatives of people who were
disappeared in Honduras between 1979 and 1989.
The 2011 prize winner was
Ni Yulan, a human rights lawyer from
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
.
The 2012 prize winner was
Marimuthu Bharathan, a
Dalit human rights defender from
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, although he could not receive the award in person due to his being denied a passport by the Government of India.
The 2013 prize winner was
Aahung, a human rights organization from Pakistan working to further
sexual and reproductive health and rights.
The 2014 prize winner was
Mideast Youth, which creates online platforms for discussion of human rights issues in parts of the
Middle East
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
. The award was presented to
Esra'a Al Shafei, the organisation's founder and director.
The 2015 prize went to
IRA-Mauritania, an organisation challenging
slavery in Mauritania.
The 2016 prize went to
Nighat Dad, a
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
i activist who supports the right of women to access the internet and use it free of harassment.
The 2017 prize went to
Graciela Pérez Rodriguez, a
Mexican human rights activist, who defends the rights of family members of disappeared persons in Mexico.
The 2018 prize went to the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein.
The 2020 prize went to the
Armenian transgender
A transgender (often shortened to trans) person has a gender identity different from that typically associated with the sex they were sex assignment, assigned at birth.
The opposite of ''transgender'' is ''cisgender'', which describes perso ...
activist and founder of
Right Side NGO (Իրավունքի Կողմ),
Lilit Martirosyan.
The 2021 prize went to the
Ugandan human rights lawyer
Nicholas Opiyo for his work against the anti-gay law in his country and the criminalising of torture.
Nominees
2014
In 2014, 30 candidates have been nominated for the prize:
Ladislaus Kiiza Rwakafuuzi,
Elena Klimova,
Audrey Mbugua,
Meng Lin,
Mideast Youth platform,
Chidi Odinkalu,
Sahil,
Sima Samar,
SHEILD,
Terre des hommes,
Under The Same Sun,
WADI,
YASunidos,
Leyla Yunus,
Margarita Zamora Tobar,
Abounaddara,
ASL19,
CADHAC,
Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies,
Centre for Civil Society and Democracy in Syria,
Colectiva Feminista para el Desarallo Local,
Committee Against Torture,
Mazen Darwish,
Droit et Justice,
Euromaidan SOS,
Foro de Jovenes con Liderazgo,
Hasht-e Subh,
International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran,
Rasul Jafarov, and
Jan Sahas.
2020
In 2020, 13 candidates were nominated for the prize:
Lilit Martirosyan (Europe), The Belarus Helsinki Committee (Europe), Human Rights Centre ZMINA (Europe), Victor Domingo Zambrano Gonzales (Latin America), Georgina Orellano (Latin America), Carlos Fernando Charmorro Barrios (Latin America),
Francisco José de Roux Rengifo (Latin America), zk´at Red de Sanadoras del Feminismo Comunitario Territorial (Latin America), Parveena Ahangar (Asia),
Quanzhang Wang and Wenzu Li (Asia), the
Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms (Middle East and North Africa), the Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development (Middle East and North Africa), and the Sudanese Professionals Association (Sub-Saharan Africa).
References
External links
Human Rights Tulip Netherlands Government webpage
''Human Rights Tulip'' Innovating Justice Forum
''Human Rights Tulip'', HiiL
Photograph of the Tulip statuette (Aahung website)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Human Rights Tulip
Human rights awards
Awards established in 2007
2007 establishments in the Netherlands