JPP’S SARAH BELAL AWARDED 2016 FRANCO-GERMAN HUMAN RIGHTS PRIZE

 
BERLIN, 1 Dec 2016: We are pleased to announce that Justice Project Pakistan Executive Director Sarah Belal has been awarded the inaugural Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law.

The prize is being awarded for the first time today (1 December 2016) jointly by the governments of France and Germany, to human rights defenders from around the world who have fought for the proper observance of human rights and the rule of law in their respective countries.

The ceremony will be held in Berlin, Germany.

Belal is being recognized for “repeatedly [igniting] debates about the Pakistani justice system, both locally and internationally.”

“Through her many activities, Sarah Belal has become a part of an international network of legal experts and investigators who advocate for victims of severe human rights violations.”

Belal is one of only 16 human rights activists from all over the world to be awarded this prize. Other winners include activists from, among other countries, Brazil, Chad, Cameroon, Italy, Jordan and Russia. Belal is the first Pakistani to be honoured for her dedication to human rights by this award.

Germany and France announced the launch of an annual international Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law in April 2016.

All prizewinners will receive a medal designed by artist Anna Martha Napp.

Belal founded JPP in 2009, to defend the rights of the most vulnerable Pakistani prisoners facing the harshest punishments. She has previously won the prestigious Echoing Green Global Fellowship, making JPP the first Pakistani organization to be recognized in the fellowship’s 25-year history.
 

Editor’s Notes

1.Justice Project Pakistan (JPP) is a human rights organization that provides pro bono legal representation to the most vulnerable Pakistani prisoners facing the harshest punishments. Our clients include those facing the death penalty, the mentally ill, victims of police torture and detainees of the ‘War on Terror’. JPP was established in December 2009 and is based in Lahore, Pakistan.
2.For details contact: Wassam Waheed (+92 346 9177771) or Rimmel Mohydin (+92 321 4224941)