The Ukrainian people receive an important human rights prize from the European Union | NOW

The European Parliament has awarded the Sakharov Prize to the Ukrainian people. This award is the EU’s highest honor for human rights defenders.

“This award is for Ukrainians who are fighting on the ground. For those who had to flee. For those who have lost relatives and friends. For everyone who stands up and fights for what they believe in. I know that the brave of Ukraine will not give up and neither will we,” Parliament Speaker Roberta Metsola said during the announcement.

Other nominees for the award were WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and the Colombian Truth Commission. The accompanying prize will be awarded on December 14 in Strasbourg.

MEP Thijs Reuten (PvdA) was one of the initiators of the nomination of the Ukrainian people. “Many will remain anonymous and unknown, but each of them makes an indispensable contribution to the defense of Ukraine and to the protection of peace, democracy and human rights on the European continent,” said Reuten. .

The prize winner will receive 50,000 euros. This money will be distributed to representatives of the Ukrainian population, writes the news agency Reuters. These include humanitarian organisations, a human rights lawyer and the mayor of Melitopol, under Russian occupation.

The Sakharov Prize is awarded annually. The prize is named after Soviet dissident and Nobel laureate Andrei Sakharov and has been awarded since 1988. Last year, the prize was awarded to detained Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. His daughter came in his place to receive the award.