Sakharov Prize facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Sakharov Prizefor Freedom and Thought |
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The 2023 Sakharov Prize diploma was given to Mahsa Jina Amini and the Woman, Life, Freedom movement in Iran.
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| Presented by | European Parliament | |||
| Reward | A diploma and €50,000 | |||
| First awarded | December 1988 | |||
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The Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, often just called the Sakharov Prize, is a special award. It honors people or groups who have spent their lives fighting for human rights and the freedom for people to think for themselves. The prize is named after Andrei Sakharov, a Russian scientist who spoke out against his government. The European Parliament created the award in December 1988.
Every year, a group of leaders in the European Parliament decides who should win. They announce the winner's name in October. The award ceremony happens in December in a large, round chamber in Strasbourg, France. Along with a diploma, the winner receives €50,000.
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How the Winner is Chosen
The process of picking a winner is very careful. First, two committees in the European Parliament create a list of people who could win. These are called nominees.
In September, the members of these committees vote to make the list shorter. This shorter list is called the shortlist. Finally, the Parliament's top leaders, including the President, choose the winner from the shortlist.
Famous Winners
The prize has been given to many brave people and groups from all over the world.
Early Winners
The very first prize in 1988 was shared by two people. They were Nelson Mandela from South Africa and Anatoly Marchenko from Russia. Both were honored for their fight for freedom.
In 1990, Aung San Suu Kyi from Burma (now Myanmar) won the prize. However, she was under house arrest and could not collect her award until 2013.
The first organization to win was the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo from Argentina in 1992. This group of mothers bravely demanded to know what happened to their children who disappeared during a time of government conflict.
Winners Who Also Won the Nobel Peace Prize
Winning the Sakharov Prize is a great honor. Some winners have also received the famous Nobel Peace Prize. This shows how important their work is.
- Nelson Mandela (1993)
- Aung San Suu Kyi (1991)
- Malala Yousafzai (2014) - A young activist from Pakistan who fights for girls' right to education.
- Denis Mukwege (2018)
- Nadia Murad (2018)
- Memorial (2022) - An organization that worked to remember victims of political oppression in Russia.
Recent Winners
The prize continues to honor modern-day heroes.
- In 2017, the award went to the Democratic Opposition in Venezuela. They were recognized for their struggle for democracy in their country.
- In 2022, the prize was awarded to the brave people of Ukraine. They were honored for defending their country and their freedom.
- In 2023, the prize was given to Mahsa Jina Amini and the Woman, Life, Freedom movement in Iran. They were honored for fighting for women's rights.
- The 2024 prize was awarded to María Corina Machado and Edmundo González for their fight for democracy in Venezuela.
List of All Winners
Here is a list of everyone who has won the Sakharov Prize since it began.
| Year | Winner(s) | Country/Organization |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Nelson Mandela and Anatoly Marchenko |  South Africa South Africa and  Soviet Union Soviet Union |
| 1989 | Alexander Dubček |  Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia |
| 1990 | Aung San Suu Kyi |  Myanmar Burma |
| 1991 | Adem Demaçi |  Yugoslavia Yugoslavia |
| 1992 | Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo |  Argentina Argentina |
| 1993 | Oslobođenje (a newspaper) |  Bosnia-Herzegovina |
| 1994 | Taslima Nasrin |  Bangladesh Bangladesh |
| 1995 | Leyla Zana |  Turkey Turkey |
| 1996 | Wei Jingsheng |  China China |
| 1997 | Salima Ghezali |  Algeria Algeria |
| 1998 | Ibrahim Rugova |  Yugoslavia |
| 1999 | Xanana Gusmão |  East Timor East Timor |
| 2000 | ¡Basta Ya! (an organization) |  Spain Spain |
| 2001 | Nurit Peled-Elhanan, Izzat Ghazzawi, and Zacarias Kamwenho |  Israel Israel,  Palestine Palestine, and  Angola Angola |
| 2002 | Oswaldo Payá |  Cuba Cuba |
| 2003 | Kofi Annan and the United Nations |  Ghana Ghana and  United Nations United Nations |
| 2004 | Belarusian Association of Journalists |  Belarus Belarus |
| 2005 | Ladies in White, Reporters Without Borders, and Hauwa Ibrahim | Cuba Cuba,  France France, and  Nigeria Nigeria |
| 2006 | Alaksandar Milinkievič | Belarus Belarus |
| 2007 | Salih Mahmoud Osman |  Sudan Sudan |
| 2008 | Hu Jia | China China |
| 2009 | Memorial (an organization) |  Russia Russia |
| 2010 | Guillermo Fariñas | Cuba Cuba |
| 2011 | Five activists from the Arab Spring: Asmaa Mahfouz, Ahmed al-Senussi, Razan Zaitouneh, Ali Farzat, and Mohamed Bouazizi |  Egypt Egypt,  Libya Libya,  Syria Syria, and  Tunisia Tunisia |
| 2012 | Nasrin Sotoudeh and Jafar Panahi |  Iran Iran |
| 2013 | Malala Yousafzai |  Pakistan Pakistan |
| 2014 | Denis Mukwege |  DR Congo |
| 2015 | Raif Badawi |  Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia |
| 2016 | Nadia Murad and Lamiya Haji Bashar |  Iraq Iraq |
| 2017 | Democratic Opposition in Venezuela |  Venezuela Venezuela |
| 2018 | Oleg Sentsov |  Ukraine Ukraine |
| 2019 | Ilham Tohti | China China |
| 2020 | Democratic Opposition in Belarus | Belarus Belarus |
| 2021 | Alexei Navalny | Russia Russia |
| 2022 | The people of Ukraine | Ukraine Ukraine |
| 2023 | Mahsa Jina Amini and the Woman, Life, Freedom movement | Iran Iran |
| 2024 | María Corina Machado and Edmundo González | Venezuela Venezuela |
See also
In Spanish: Premio Sájarov para niños
- Nobel Peace Prize
- Gandhi Peace Prize
