{"id":19058,"date":"2013-09-28T09:27:02","date_gmt":"2013-09-28T07:27:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.zeus.aegee.org\/magazine\/?p=19058"},"modified":"2013-09-27T18:27:51","modified_gmt":"2013-09-27T16:27:51","slug":"new-edition-of-the-sakharov-prize-coming-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zeus.aegee.org\/magazine\/2013\/09\/28\/new-edition-of-the-sakharov-prize-coming-up\/","title":{"rendered":"New Edition of the Sakharov Prize Coming Up"},"content":{"rendered":"

Established 25 years ago and awarded each year by the European Parliament, the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought has finally\u00a0announced\u00a0the list of nominees for this year. The seven finalists were announced on September 16th in Brussels, including Malala Yousafzai and Edward Snowden.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Named after Soviet dissident Andrei Sakharov<\/a>, the prize was set up in 1988 aiming to honour individuals or organisations that have exceptionally\u00a0fought to defend human rights and the freedom of thought. The nominations made by political groups (or Members of the European Parliament – MEPs) are followed by a selection process; Foreign Affairs and Development committees choose and shortlist the three finalists, and the final selection of the Laureate is made by the Conference of Presidents in Strasbourg, France.<\/p>\n

The European Parliament organises an annual ceremony around December 10th (Human Rights Day) in Strasbourg, to award the human rights prize plus a monetary grant of \u20ac50,000.<\/p>\n

Among the historical winners are Nelson Mandela and Anatoly Marchenko, the first awardees (1988), as well as Nobel Peace Prize Winner Aung San Suu Kyi (1990). Some organisations, such as Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo<\/a> (1992), \u00a1Basta Ya!<\/a> (2000), Ladies in White<\/a> (2005) and Memorial<\/a> (2009) have also seen their work recognized.<\/p>\n

This year, the seven shortlisted finalists are:<\/p>\n